Rodri refuses to hit back at Calhanoglu’s comment on best midfielder | OneFootball

Manchester City star Rodri refuses to hit back at Hakan Calhanoglu, who named himself the best midfielder in the world a few months ago, but insists Inter will be tough to beat: ‘We know how Italian teams defend.’

Rodri was the match winner the last time Inter and Manchester City met in the Champions League in 2023.

It was indeed a very special match for the Premier League side who won the trophy for the first time in Istanbul thanks to the Spanish midfielder’s winner in the second half.

Tomorrow, Inter and Man City meet again in the first match of the 2024-25 Champions League.

Rodri is among the 30 candidates for the Ballon d’Or, and many, including Fabio Capello, see the Spaniard as a clear favourite.

“I feel people are recognising my work and pushing me to win. To be honest, it’s not something I think about. I dream, of course, because I never thought I could arrive at this moment,” Rodri said at a press conference on Tuesday.

“Once you arrive here, people say what they think. I know I play in a different position than many players nominated for this trophy, but I think it shows that football can be beautiful from different points of view. Being a midfielder, scoring goals, or being a defender. We know how football works, but there are a lot of people who appreciate the role of the midfielder.

Rodri refuses to hit back at Calhanoglu’s comment on best midfielder

Inter midfielder Calhanoglu made a ranking of the best midfielders in the world a few weeks ago, saying that he was the No.1, followed by Rodri. Therefore, the Spaniard was asked to comment revealing his personal top 5.

“What can I say? It’s his opinion and I respect that,” he replied.

“I am not here to judge who is the best and who is not the best. I think you guys are professional in analysing these things. I just want to be the best version of myself. I think he’s a great player. I don’t want to say who is better. I want to be the best. That’s why I perform, but I don’t want to do a ranking.”

Pep Guardiola praised Inter during his pre-match press conference and Rodri also showed the utmost respect for the defending Serie A champions.

“We watched some games, but I don’t need to know how they play because I know exactly the players and how they perform,” he said.

“I think they have many key players. I think they defend very well. The transitions are good. They are a solid team. They know exactly what to do when they have the ball and to me that’s the most important thing. Of course they have big stars like Lautaro and important players in midfield. Barella, Calhanoglu and many of those.

“I think it’s a complete team. I don’t think they have a main guy, they have many good players, they perform well as a team. They are tough to beat. We need our best performance to beat them tomorrow. Work well as a team. We know it’s going to be like knocking on a wall because we know how Italian teams defend, so we must do our best offensively.

“They are the same players from last year. I know them very well and how they perform, the quality, and the way the defend and attack. They have very good players. What they do very well is how they pass from defence to attack with high speed. We must watch out. They are strong but we are good too, so we’ll see a good battle tomorrow.”