Manchester City star Rodri believes that Vinicius Junior didn’t deserve to come second in the Ballon d’Or rankings, and he also confirmed that he doesn’t care much that the Brazilian star didn’t congratulate him on the award.
The Spanish international gave a lengthy interview to Cadena Ser in which he talked about many things, and during which he revealed that he was unhappy with Real Madrid’s position in boycotting the Ballon d’Or ceremony after Vinicius lost the award.
Regarding his assessment of the final Ballon d’Or rankings, Rodri said: “If I could vote, I would have chosen Dani Carvajal in second place and Vinicius in third place.”
He added: “I didn’t miss congratulating Vinicius, all I care about is my family and my team, it was one of the happiest days of my life, without a doubt. Their absence didn’t hurt me and the last thing I thought about was the people who didn’t attend the ceremony.”
He continued: “Some former Real Madrid players congratulated me on the award, like Nacho and Joselu. I wouldn’t have done what Real Madrid did and not come to the ceremony, but there’s no need to talk about it.”
Speaking about his deservingness for the award, he concluded: “The hardest thing in football is to continue, and the Ballon d’Or values that a lot. In 2023, I think I deserved the award because of my great season with City, and this year I performed better, but I will not be the one to say whether I deserved the award or not.”
It is noteworthy that Rodri confirmed in the interview that he may recover faster than expected and is likely to be able to participate in matches at the end of the current season.
