Goodbye to a teacher – AS.com

The game was the least of it, a good excuse to get the staff together and farewell Toni Kroos with head of state honors for his ten years of glory and for his uniqueness. He is a type of player that has fallen into disuse, close to extinction, extraordinarily cerebral, with a scientific precision, almost non-existent in nature. A game producer, in short, who, contrary to the usual he leaves long before anyone asks him to or, to be more exact, he leaves even though they ask him not to, even from his own family. A guy with balls, according to Ancelotti’s classicism. A German incapable of facing decadence. Such a club player that he seemed to be embarrassed by the size of the tribute, including the hallway.

After that drink, the game was between well-dressed training and shameless recess. No one won it, no one deserved it, no one really sought it. The meeting, in reality, was a decoy. Madrid and the public went to something else, except for the honorable exception of Vinicius, who even in that ceremonial atmosphere left some detail.

Ancelotti tried with the eleven, which will be the one at Wembley, but it is impossible to reproduce the scenario of a final, to trace the pressure and temperature conditions, to rehearse in the Arctic to play in the Tropics. Betis did something by reinforcing surveillance of the left wing, through which Vinicius moved very intermittently, with a doubled right back, Sabaly plus Bellern, and organize the team in that 4-2-3-1 with which Borussia Dortmund will presumably appear in London. The rest was cardboard: a sparring partner with eleven declared casualties, several of the best players on the bench, no objective on the horizon and some players with a reserve team card. A green Betis inside and out.

Always Vinicius

Erdin Terzic should have drawn some conclusions from the hypotensive match: that Madrid is increasing its drift towards the 4-4-2 from the 4-3-3, that Camavinga will have Kroos at his side in the organization and that Rodrygo and Vinicius will often be interior tips. So far what he imagined. What I already knew is that Vinicius is Madrid’s main asset. That troublemaker, often unconscious, fast, dribbling and stubborn winger is now a total forward. He learned to finish and now he is on his way to becoming an extraordinary passer. In five minutes, first with his right and then with his left, he scored two goals, which remained an attempt because Carvajal missed the boat early and because Rodrygo put his intention in the squad and the ball in the stands. Then he wanted to finish it himself, but Vieites guessed the problem. Mendy’s subsequent shot was taken by Sokratis, another one who leaves football with enormous dignity, near the line. Later Vinicius tried it with a heel and the Betis goalkeeper caught his wits. Four good actions, all from the Brazilian, in the middle of a leaden game, of white trantrn to spend little and risk even less. A duel very much about putting away clothes and little about swimming.

Betis didn’t have salt or pepper either. Beaten on the right by Sabaly, his progressions were inconclusive: a few centers with little faith in the area, some mischief from Rodri, several threats from Ayoze, an inexplicably failed header from Bellern… Nothing that led him to put pressure on Courtois until he Miranda launched a free hit from the right, the Belgian rejected it badly and Cardoso shot him almost over the line. Díaz de Mera, after a VAR call, annulled the goal due to a guilty boot by Marc Roca, who went offside in his jump to hinder the goal. A venial sin by Courtois that does not question his presence in the Wembley eleven. A microscopic violation.

Exit on shoulders

The goal remained in limbo, but Betis took note: they could win the game. He returned from the break with more aspirations and better football. Sabaly touched a post, Courtois took a not too demanding shot from Ayoze, the best green and white. The flight had more beauty than real merit. Then the Canary Islander raised the bar and so did the Belgian, with one of those miracle saves from before the injury.

It was before the only truly solemn moments of a very postseason game arrived. Kepa came in first, which could have been and wasn’t. A great goalkeeper with little fortune. Lunin took his place, but retained the appreciation of the Bernabu. Then Nacho left, whose goodbye is still unofficial. The tribute from the stands, however, was official. The perfect youth player, the infallible replacement. It is also in the history of the club.

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And after that, after a well-annulled goal against Ayoze and the entry of Lucas Vázquez and Modric, a bullfighter who is in his forties, the long-awaited relief of the German arrived, who had been applauded even for his corner kicks, the best on the circuit. He was already wearing the captain’s armband. Imagine what his departure was like. It happened in the 86th minute. He was hugged by everyone in a dedicated and grateful stadium, with his children and wife full of tears on the sideline. Then they blanketed him and he took his last lap around the stadium accompanied by the entire squad. Thus Kroos stopped giving passes to write his memoirs, but he stayed to live in Madrid. Good news. She should join the gym in the summer, lest they beg her to come back at the end of August.

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