Manchester City midfielder Rodri said he could not understand why Cristiano Ronaldo questioned his choice as winner of the 2024 Ballon d’Or.
Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo said Vinícius Júnior deserved the award over Rodri because the Real Madrid striker had ‘won the Champions League and scored in the final’.
Asked about Ronaldo’s comments, Rodri told Diario AS: ‘A surprise, really, because he knows better than anyone how this award works and, above all, how the winner is chosen.
‘This year the journalists who voted felt I should have won it. It was probably these same journalists who voted for him at some point, and I imagine he would have accepted then.’
Real Madrid boycotted the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris in October after Rodri received the award against Vinícius. Rodri, 28, received the prestigious individual award after a stellar season that saw him win the Premier League title with City and the European championship with Spain.
Vinícius had been a leading contender to win the men’s award after helping Madrid win the LaLiga and Champions League double last season. The Brazilian national was later awarded FIFA’s The Best men’s player award and won Globe Soccer’s best men’s award on 30 December.
Rodri, who ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in September, spoke about the impact that winning the Ballon d’Or had on his daily life. ‘It changed my life,’ he said. ‘Many things I could do before, of course, I can’t do anymore. But hey, it’s for a good reason…. I have the philosophy that in life you have to take things as they are given to you.
‘There is no need to complain when things don’t go your way or to go crazy when you win a Ballon d’Or. God has given me what he has given me and I am extremely grateful. I have to face everything, including injuries, and move on.’
Leave a comment