Toni Kroos (http://www.theinfostride.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/players/player=275162/index.html) is hardly a veteran of the game, but he granted FIFA.com his first exclusive interview almost five years ago. He was just 17 at the time, and poised to collect the adidas Golden Ball as best player of the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2007 in Korea Republic, where his precocious vision and exceptional skill spearheaded Germany (http://www.theinfostride.com/associations/association=ger/index.html)'s march to third place. Even then, the youngster was fascinated by the big personalities who defined his position on the field, often divisive but always magnetic characters. “I'm overwhelmed by Johan Micoud the player and Stefan Effenberg the personality," he told us.
As the world now knows, his achievements as a youth were merely the precursor to what looks like a big career in the making for the Bayern Munich man. Five years down the road, Kroos rates as one of the best creative players in the Bundesliga. He is a regular for both club and country, ready and willing to seize his chance on the biggest footballing stage and prove he has what it takes to be called world-class. Tuesday evening potentially provides the first step up onto that stage.
Moment of truth
There will be plenty at stake when Bayern entertain Swiss champions FC Basel in the UEFA Champions League Round-of-16 return leg, which starts with the men from Munich a goal down. It is all or nothing for the Bavarians, who have been dreaming for months of reaching this season's final on their home ground, where a big performance this Tuesday will be needed. Kroos is just 22, but exuded extraordinary calm and authority when he previewed the match for FIFA.com: “If we actually take our chances this time, it'll definitely be fine. I think every single one of us will resist being eliminated with everything we’ve got."
The Bundesliga title race looked like Bayern's to lose in late autumn last year, but the club's form has been patchy in recent months. Kroos and company seemed cramped, lacking the pace and dynamism of the first third of the season. Worst of all, the goals which had flowed so freely mysteriously dried up. However, boss Jupp Heynckes’ men released an avalanche of pent-up frustration last weekend in a thumping 7-1 home win over hapless Hoffenheim. Bayern now hope to maintain their new-found momentum when they face Basel in Europe's elite club competition, before going on to do battle with the true giants of the continent. “But that's not something we should be thinking about at the moment. Our focus is on getting through against Basel. After that, we'll see what happens if we come up against the big clubs," cautioned Kroos, sticking tightly to the old footballing adage of taking it one step at a time.
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