2023-06-25 10:00:00
Voted best player in the Champions League with Manchester City and best player in the Nations League with Spain Rodri is going through a prosperous period. At just 27 years old, the defensive midfielder at 91 meters is considered by many observers to be one of the best in the world at his position. In view of his performances and his records, a very good ranking in the next Ballon d’Or would be anything but surprising.
Rodri, a dream season
A year. It only took one full season with 53 matches, club and selection combined, to decide Manchester City to drop 70 million euros to bring in Rodri from Atlético de Madrid. It’s July 4, 2019. Before the Colchoneros, the sturdy midfielder had more than proven himself in the Villarreal side. Over the past four seasons, the Madrid native has taken on another dimension in the colors of Manchester City. The latest will almost have been that of consecration.
Rodri, the hero of Manchester City in the Champions League final. (Icon Sports)
With this incredible Champions League – Premier League – FA Cup treble achieved by the Skyblues. On a personal note, Rodri, the only scorer in the final, was voted the best player in the C1. Same title in the League of Nations with Spain, during the coronation against Croatia. At the same time, he did not miss a single minute during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Clearly exceeding the bar of 60 matches played this season. A real feat, especially when you have the immense debauchery of energy that his position requires. The mark of the very great. Before the supreme individual award?
The Ballon d’Or, an achievable goal?
From now on, the Ball rewards the best player in the world over a season and not over a calendar year. The criteria, too, have changed. Today, the “individual performances” and the “decisive and impressive character of the suitors“. Before “the collective aspect and the trophies won” et “the class of the player and his sense of fair play“. As for the prize list, it is difficult to compete with the Spaniard. Even if Lionel Messi, world champion with Argentina and French champion with Paris Saint-Germain, supports the comparison.
In terms of individual performance, Rodri’s performance is well established. But the 52 goals scored by his Manchester City team-mate Erling Haaland in his first season in England will probably speak more to the members of the jury. Same thing with Kylian Mbappé, who has just finished top scorer in Ligue 1 for the fifth consecutive year. As you will have understood, Rodri will have a hard time becoming the third Spanish player in history after Alfredo Di Stéfano and Luis Suarez (year 50-60) to lift the Ballon d’Or. On the other hand, a place of honor would be more than deserved for one of the metronomes of Pep Guardiola and de la Roja.
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