I Am Scouted by Real Madrid

Chapter 948: Chapter 32: Champions League Final: The New World Number One Rodri (3)

This season, in the few Premier League matches after Rodri’s serious injury, Manchester City did achieve consecutive victories, but the scene was far more chaotic compared to when Rodri was on the field, which proves Rodri’s importance to the team.

As the most stable piece in Manchester City’s midfield, when Rodri is on the field, Manchester City is very solid on both offensive and defensive ends. Guardiola’s Manchester City was able to achieve the unprecedented feat of four consecutive Premier League titles last season, and the team’s stability was the most crucial reason among them.

Although Real Madrid, in the absence of Vinicius, still has Rodrigo and Bellingham among others to support the front line, once Manchester City loses Rodri, it becomes very difficult to find a player to replace him, whether for Spain Team or Manchester City, Rodri is one of the most indispensable players.

While the highlight of Rodri’s career was scoring the winning goal in the 2023 Champions League final and helping Manchester City achieve the Triple Crown feat, during the evaluation period of this year’s Ballon d’Or, his performance was even more impressive than during the Triple Crown season.

Last season Rodri represented Manchester City in 50 appearances across all competitions, contributing 9 goals and 13 assists, doubling the number of direct goal involvements compared to the Triple Crown season, including several key goals or assists during crucial matches and the season sprint stage: drawing 1-1 at home against Chelsea, Rodri scored the equalizer in the 83rd minute; a 3-1 comeback victory against Manchester United, Rodri provided two assists; a 4-1 win over Villa, Rodri contributed a goal and an assist; in the decisive final match of the season where Manchester City defeated West Ham United and surpassed Arsenal to win the championship, Rodri also scored the goal to seal the victory. Considering his importance to the team and his highlight moments, Rodri’s performance over the past year at the club level is equally deserving of the Ballon d’Or glory, coupled with championship victories and honors as the best player, Rodri ultimately surpassed Vinicius in the evaluation, which is not too surprising.

With his flawless and steady performance over the past year, Rodri ultimately won the 2024 Ballon d’Or trophy as a midfield player, achieving a dream that predecessors like Xavi and Iniesta never fulfilled.

Spain has not produced a new Ballon d’Or winner in the past 64 years.

Rodri’s award breaks all of this completely, and Chen Zhong has long proven that as long as a midfield player is excellent enough, they are also strong contenders for the Ballon d’Or. The regrets of Xavi and Iniesta in the past were left for Rodri to fulfill, reviving the glory of Spanish football.

Since joining Manchester City from Atletico Madrid in 2019, the Spanish Defensive Midfielder has been steadily improving each year, from missing the Champions League final starting lineup in 2021, to becoming an indispensable ironclad midfielder for Manchester City in the 2022-23 season, achieving the Champions League breakthrough and the Triple Crown feat with perfect performance, then to this year helping Spain win the European Cup championship and personally winning the highest individual honor in football, the Ballon d’Or. The humble and straightforward Rodri interprets what it means that hard work pays off.

Beyond reaching heights on the field, Rodri is also a ”top student,” completing degrees in business management and economics alongside his football career. In the extravagant world of professional football, Rodri is a genuine breath of fresh air; he doesn’t even have his own social media account, and apart from football and academics, you can hardly find any news. Since the beginning of his career, Rodri has always been immune to any off-field scandals and negative news. So far, the only slightly controversial comment he made might be singing a few lines of ”Gibraltar is Spain’s” during the celebration after Spain’s European Cup victory.