Manchester City midfielder Rodri joined Lionel Messi, Zinedine Zidane and Johan Cruyff on Monday night as he claimed his first Ballon d’Or crown
The Spanish was named winner of 2024 having beaten the likes of Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and – controversially – Vinicius Junior to the award, becoming the first Premier League player to win the award since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2008.
The award has long been dominated by the Portuguese and his rival Messi, with the pair winning 13 awards between them in the last 16 years, but neither was nominated for this year’s trophy for the first time in more than two decades.
Rodri’s victory may have offended Madridistas across the globe following Vinicius’ resentment, but the midfielder is a worthy winner, rewarded by an outstanding 2023/24 campaign for club and country full of clutch performances and silverware.
This is how Rodri beat Vinicius to be named the best in the world.
The Ballon d’Or is often influenced by international success, a factor that contributed greatly to Rodri’s Man City team-mate Erling Haaland losing out to World Cup winner Lionel Messi in 2023. But within a year there was the European Championship and the America’s Cup. , international glory was always going to influence minds before the Ballon d’Or.
For Vinicius, Copa America success never came. The Brazilian scored twice during the tournament, but his country’s quarter-final exit at the hands of Uruguay affected the Champions League winner’s chances of landing the most prestigious individual prize on the market.
In contrast, last summer’s international excursions could not have gone better for Rodri. The midfielder was the axis of the track Spain side that tasted glory at Euro 2024 in Germany, with the Man City metronome was named Player of the Tournament after La Roja beat England in the final.
had brazil won the Copa América, it might have been a different story then, but Rodri’s international successes helped propel him to the top spot.
Although comparing the goals and assists figures of Rodri and Vinicius may seem futile given that the latter plays as a striker for Real Madrid and first at the base of Man City’s midfield, highlights how impressive Rodri was in the final third in 2023/24.
The Spaniard has long been Man City’s clutch goalscorer – the 2023 Champions League final winner springs to mind – but he stepped up his output last term. He finished the campaign with nine goals at club level in 50 appearances, one of which was a late goal on the final day of the Premier League season against West Ham United as Man City won the title.
The defensive midfielder also provided an impressive 14 assists in all competitions for the Cityzens – double his 2022/23 figure. It is also three more than Vinicius managed in 39 appearances for the Champions League and La Liga champions.
Rodri is not only a counter-attack destroyer and four-shield shield, he is the main creator of one of the best sides in the world.
Midfielders are often overlooked for the Ballon d’Or. The accolade tends to favor forward-line glamour, with only a handful of engine room residents to have been victorious, the latest being Luka Modric in 2018. Yet even fewer have been defensive midfielders.
Some would argue that no deep-lying midfielder has ever won the award, although Lothar Matthaus and Matthias Sammer could claim to be number six. Pinpointing the exact position of players as eras and styles change is difficult.
Regardless, the growing number of enforcers in the modern game should be celebrated. There may never be a better opportunity to award a defensive midfielder with the Ballon d’Or again and it’s a position that has often been overlooked by those behind the award in the past.
There is no questioning Rodri’s status as a the best midfielder in the world.
