This year has been life-changing for Toni Kroos. The 24-year-old midfielder won the World Cup with Germany in July and moved to Real Madrid just days later from Bayern Munich.

Here, Goal takes a closer look at how the transfer has worked out so far...

THE DEAL

Long linked with a move away from Bayern, Kroos joined Madrid from the German champions on July 17 in a deal worth €25 million.

Talks over a new contract in Munich had broken down earlier in 2014 as Bayern were unwilling to meet Kroos' salary demands. With only one year left on his contract at the Allianz Arena, the 24-year-old was sold to avoid him leaving for free in the summer of 2015.

Some 8,000 fans were present at the Santiago Bernabeu to welcome the midfielder at his official presentation after the player put pen to paper on a six-year contract.

"Madrid are the greatest club in the world and a cut above Bayern," Kroos said after completing his transfer.

THE STORY SO FAR

Kroos made his Madrid debut in the Uefa Super Cup clash against Sevilla on August 12 and immediately impressed as Real started the season with a trophy.

With Xabi Alonso absent through suspension, the German lined up alongside Luka Modric and fellow summer signing James Rodriquez. But he played with the Basque midfielder in the 1-1 draw at home to Atletico in the Supercopa de Espana and then again in the second leg at the Vicente Calderon as Madrid lost 1-0.

Early indications were that the two players would need time to gel and Madrid struggled to create chances in the games against Atleti and Diego Simeone's side sealed the trophy.

However, Alonso decided late in August to leave Madrid for Kroos' old club Bayern - effectively signed as a replacement for the man he was supposed to complement at the Bernabeu.



Life without Alonso began with difficulty as Madrid went down 4-2 at Real Sociedad, a match in which Kroos struggled defensively in a three-man midfield alongside Isco and Modric.

That defeat raised doubts over the German's ability to succeed in a holding role as Madrid threw away a two-goal lead at Anoeta.

A 2-1 loss to Atletico after the international break also did little to dispel these doubts as Ancelotti's side were outmuscled in midfield once again. Kroos, once more, was disappointing.

As well as Alonso, Madrid had also lost Angel Di Maria to Manchester United. Suddenly the Italian coach was left with the task of rebuilding his side's midfield all over again, but he vowed: "I'll find the balance - just like I did last year."

Real reacted by thrashing Basel 5-1 in the Champions League days later, before beating Deportivo La Coruna 8-2 in Galicia and thumping Elche 5-1 to make it 18 goals in just over a week.

Kroos impressed in those games and received a standing ovation from Madrid fans after he was withdrawn late on in the 5-0 win over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

THE FUTURE

Kroos is already a popular player at Madrid and has shown plenty of quality in his link-up play, his distribution and his superb set-piece deliveries.

However, question marks remain over the German's ability to succeed in a position similar to that of Alonso. Lacking the defensive discipline of the Basque, Kroos will either need to adapt to a more sacrificial role (learn how to track runners and make interceptions) or be paired alongside a more natural holding midfielder like Sami Khedira or Asier Illarramendi.

Recent performances against smaller sides like Basel (in which he covered 11.4km, more than any of his team-mates), Deportivo and Elche have shown signs that he can adapt as an all-rounder in Ancelotti's side.

"Kroos is intelligent and has a lot of quality, he is doing well and getting better all the time," the Italian said last month.

However, the true tests will come in games against tougher teams like Barcelona, Atletico again and Liverpool in the Champions League.

If he can combine defensive stability with his impressive range of passing and add awareness to his impressive attacking tools, Kroos' signing will be considered a resounding success. Right now, however, there is still some work to be done.