Ballon d’Or: Rodri overtakes Vinicius and predicts a Barcelona player as future winner”/>
The Manchester City player overtakes Madrid’s Vinicius Jr and wins the Ballon d’Or before predicting a Barcelona player as the future winner.
During the recent Classico, the Ballon d’Or loomed over the match. After the Madrid club suffered a severe defeat against FC Barcelona, they had hopes of benefiting from this distinction, where their Brazilian striker Vinicius Jr was the big contender. Against all expectations, it was the Spaniard Rodri who won the prize, surpassing Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham. He thus becomes the successor of Lionel Messi. At the end of the ceremony, the Manchester City player expressed his joy in his speech and did not hesitate to choose a Barça player as the future winner.
Rodri’s full speech
“It’s an incredible night for me today. I have a lot of things to be grateful for. First of all, to France Football and UEFA, for this award, for being here one more year. And also to all those who voted for me and who trusted me. This is a very special day not only for me, but also for my family and my country.
I want to thank the most important person in my life, Laura, who turns 8 today. Without you, this path would not have been the same, so thank you very much. To my family, of course, for all the values they passed on to me, and which helped me to be who I am. A person who plays football for love. Also to my agent, whose name is Pablo and who went through the whole process. Who would have told us that we would be here today when you came to pick me up and take me to the games. With a love I’ve never seen, unconditional, with my dream of reaching the top.
I don’t want to forget my teammates, without them I wouldn’t be here. To Manchester City, to the staff and the players. I am in what for me is the best club in the world. To the Selection, to Luis (de la Fuente) for trusting me for so long and to my teammates, with whom we won the European Cup. And especially to Dani Carvajal, who suffered the same injury as me, who deserves this award.
And the one who I think will win: Lamine Yamal. Keep working hard, you have everything ahead of you. It is a victory for Spanish football. Like so many players who didn’t win it. Xavi, Iniesta, Casillas, Busquets…
Many friends told me that football won. I give visibility to the midfielders who have existed over the years. Today, this dark work has been revealed.
I would like to tell a story about the process that brought me here. At 17 I packed my bags for a dream, Villarreal, I never thought all this could happen. I remember one day I said enough, I called my father crying with the feeling that it was all over. It seemed like the dream was fading and he told me, “If we’ve gotten here, we’re not going to throw in the towel.” It changed my mentality. “It’s about a normal boy, with values, who doesn’t focus so much on stereotypes outside of football, and who can be named the best player in the world.”
