Rodri responds to Cristiano Ronaldo over Ballon d’Or controversy | OneFootball

Ballon d’Or winner Rodri has expressed his surprise at the criticism of Cristiano Ronaldo after the Manchester City midfielder was awarded the prestigious annual prize.

The Premier League and Euro 2024 winner was voted as the best men’s player in a tight contest with Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr, who elected not to attend the ceremony along with his teammates after learning that he was not going to win.

While Rodri was a key figure in successful campaigns for both club and country, five-time Ballon d’Or recipient Ronaldo said that it was “unfair” that Vinicius had not received the gong after helping his former club to La Liga and Champions League success.

The prize is awarded based on votes from journalists in an open, democratic process, and the Spaniard admitted that he found Ronaldo’s comments peculiar.

Rodri told Diario AS that the Portuguese forward’s comments were “a surprise” given his familiarity with the event.

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Cristiano Ronaldo felt Vinicius Jr should have won the Ballon d’Or (AP)

“[Ronaldo] knows better than anyone how this award works and, above all, how the winner is chosen,” he explained. “This year the journalists who vote have considered that I should win it. Probably, these same journalists were the ones who at some point voted for him to win, and I imagine that then he would agree.”

Manchester City have struggled in Rodri’s absence, with the holding midfielder’s ACL tear preceding a dramatic drop off in form that has seen Pep Guardiola’s men slip out of the title race.

The 28-year-old is hoping to make his return to the pitch before the end of the season as he recovers from the injury sustained in September.

“Psychologically, I’m much better than I thought,” Rodri explained. “That’s what I imagined in terms of pain. The first month was very difficult, but mentally it’s better than I thought. I’m talking about the desire to play again, that kind of thing. I’m pretty good. I think my body has also benefited from stopping. Not because of the injury, but in other ways. I’m trying to enjoy other things that we don’t normally have in our lives.”