Rodri Wins Ballon D'Or: The Role Of Midfielders Behind The Scene Begins To Be Seen

Rodri called the Ballon d'Or award he got the midfielders (Instagram/@mancity).

JAKARTA - Rodri won the 2024 Ballon d'Or on Monday, October 28, 2024, in Paris. He became the second Spanish-born male footballer to win the most prestigious individual award in football.

The last Spanish player to receive the Ballon d'Or was Barcelona star Luis Suarez in 1960.

In fact, if you look at the Spanish national player, there is the legendary Real Madrid striker, Alfredo di Stefano, who won the award twice, in 1957 and 1959.

It's just that Di Stefano was born in Argentina. He also defended the Argentine and Colombian national teams before moving to defend La Roja.

However, when Alfredo di Stefano won twice the Ballon d'Or trophy, he grabbed him as a Spanish player.

Meanwhile, the last four Spanish women's Ballon d'Or were won by Spanish footballers, namely Alexia Putellas (2021 and 2022) and Aitana Bonmati (2023 and 2024).

Rodri is clearly proud to make his country proud because it can enter the ranks. He considered that the trophy was a victory for Spanish football.

There are many of his senior names who should also win the Ballon d'Or because of their feasibility.

"Today is not a win for me. It's for Spanish football. For so many players who haven't won it and deserve it, like (Andres) Iniesta, Xavi (Hernandez), Iker (Casillas), Sergio Busquets, and many others," said Rodri as reported by ESPN.

In particular, Rodri said that this award further emphasized that the role of the midfielder who is often behind the scenes of the game is increasingly visible.

The last time the midfielder to win the Ballon d'Or was Luka Modric in 2018.

"This is for Spanish football and for midfield figures. Many friends wrote to me and said that football had won."

"The problem is, it gives visibility to so many midfielders who have behind-the-scenes jobs and today it's starting to look," Rodri said on stage at the ceremony.

Meanwhile, Rodri is likely to miss out for the remainder of the 2024/2025 season after suffering anterior cruise league (ACL) injury when Manchester City drew 2-2 against Arsenal on September 22, 2024.

He also received the award by kle. The knee injury occurred a few days after he told a news conference that players could strike in response to the increasing number of matches in the football calendar.

"I'm just trying to take care of myself. Rest, enjoy free time with my family, and come back stronger," said Rodri when asked about his recovery.

Previously in Paris, Barcelona's Lamine Yamal won the Kopa Trophy for the best U-21 players. Then, Aitana Bonmati won their second Ballon d'Or Feminin in a row.

In addition, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe share Gerd Muller's trophy for the most goals in a season.

Finally, Aston Villa and Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez defended the award as the best goalkeeper or Yashin Trophy in the world after his country won the Copa Amarica.