"It's just amazing."
Ballon d'Or winner Man City midfielder Rodri recently responded to Cristiano Ronaldo's comments about shooting the Ballon d'Or.
Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d'Or winner, joked at the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai that `The Ballon d'Or should have been awarded as the best man of the year at the 2024 Ballon d'Or Awards in Paris in October last year, instead of Rodri, should have been awarded by Vinicius Junior.' Vinicius Jr. missed the Ballon d'Or by finishing second behind Rodri in the press corps vote, but he was relieved by receiving the FIFA Best Male Player Award and the Globe Soccer Awards Best Male Player Award. Brazilian Real Madrid striker Vinicius led his team to victory in La Liga and Champions League with 15 goals and 6 assists in 26 La Liga matches and 6 goals and 5 assists in 10 European Champions League matches.
Ronaldo said at the ceremony that `I think Vinicius Junior should have won the Ballon d'Or. It was unfair. This is why I love the Global Soccer Awards..." he joked. "Rodri deserves it too, but because Real Madrid won the European Champions League and Vinicius scored in the final, the Ballon d'Or had to go to Vinicius." he insisted.
From Rodri's point of view, Ronaldo's remarks were regrettable enough. Rodri was honored with the Ballon d'Or award based on a worldwide vote of professional football reporters in recognition of Manchester City's contribution to winning the fourth consecutive English Premier League title for the first time in history and Luis de La Fuente's remarkable contribution to the Spanish national team winning Euro 2024.
Rodri was asked about Ronaldo's sniping remarks in an interview with Spanish media AS on the 2nd (Korea time) and responded with "Amazing".
"Ronaldo was really surprised (by his comments) because he knows better than anyone how the award is run and, above all, how the winners are selected." `The reporters who voted this year decided I should win,' he said. `I think maybe these same reporters voted for Ronaldo as the winner one day and he agreed.' Rodri, who has lost only one game in 18 months, became the first player to achieve this feat in 16 years since Ronaldo was a Manchester United player in 2008. When news of Rodri's award was announced, Real Madrid and Vinicius Jr. boycotted the ceremony, causing a backlash. Rodri said in an interview in November that "Real Madrid's absence did not hurt me. It was a happy moment with my family. I cherish my people, my family, and my club. However, it was a pity that Vinicius did not congratulate him. "
Reporter Jeon Young-ji, sky4us@sportschosun.com .
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
