Two weeks after winning football’s most prestigious award, Rodri shared which players would have received his votes for the 2024 Ballon d’Or.

In a somewhat controversial decision, Rodri beat Vinícius Júnior to become Manchester City first Ballon d’Or winner in history. The midfielder obtained 41 more votes than the real Madrid extreme, making him the third player since 2008 to take home the award not named Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi.

As Rodri continues to recover from a season-ending ACL injury, the 28-year-old spoke with COPE Radio about his Ballon d’Or victory and revealed his personal finalists for this year’s award.

“I love that people vote what they feel. It’s someone’s opinion,” Rodri said. “I respect Vinícius a lot, and Real Madrid, and anyone who knows me knows it. I would vote for Carvajal, and for Vinícius too. Maybe Carvajal second.”

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That Rodri supports Dani Carvajal over Vinícius Júnior is not a surprise; The two Spaniards won Euro 2024 together. Carvajal, who will also be out this season with an ACL injury, played 470 minutes of Spain’s successful European campaign after winning the leaguehe champions league and Spanish Super Cup with Real Madrid. Carvajal finished fourth in the Official classification of the Ballon d’Or 2024.

Rodri left Jude Bellingham out of his top three, who came third in the official classification. The England international won the same trophies as Vinícius Júnior and Carvajal, but fell short for England in the Euro 2024 final.

The City superstar attributed his Ballon d’Or victory to more than just his trophies. “I think I was the most consistent player of the season,” Rodri said.

In his 2023-24 season, Rodri made 63 appearances for both club and country, recording 12 goals and 15 assists along the way. He created 114 chances for his teammates both at City and in Spain.

City also went 27-7-0 with the 28-year-old in the middle of the park and 1-0-3 without him. Meanwhile, Spain achieved victories in all seven of its matches at Euro 2024.

Perhaps the most telling argument in favor of Rodri’s victory is the poor performance of the English defending champions in his absence this season. City entered the November international break after four consecutive defeats, falling to Tottenham Hotspur, BournemouthSporting CP and Brighton and Hove Albion.

Without their most consistent player, City have a mountain to climb if they are to secure a fifth consecutive place. first division qualification.

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