The Spanish midfielder has won the preferences after a brilliant season at Manchester City and the national team. The reasons why this distinction was not given to the Brazilian striker have to do with the voting criteria.
“It’s not only a victory for me, but also for Spanish football,” said an excited Rodri. The Spanish midfielder left aside the crutches, with which he has to walk due to the cruciate ligament injury suffered in September, and held in his hands during almost the entire speech, the same one that triggered one of the controversies. The Manchester City player won this distinction after a spectacular season, leaving Vinícius Júnior in second place, who for many was the big candidate to win this trophy. This decision sparked fury from Real Madrid.
It didn’t matter to the Spanish cast that Rodrigo Hernández was also from that country or that Carlo Ancelotti himself was also awarded. The annoyance was such that media like Brand They even ventured to point out that since this Monday “the Ballon d’Or ceases to exist” for the club.
The conflict intensified. The historic Dutchman Clarence Seedorf, on the red carpet of the gala, a few minutes before the start of the award ceremony, took aim at UEFA and described what happened as shameful: “Vinícius Júnior deserves to keep the Golden Ball. I think the problems between the two. Real Madrid and UEFA should be separated from the reward the player deserves. It’s a shame.”
However, beyond the controversy, there were footballing criteria during the election which worked to the disadvantage of the Merengues star, who will have to continue to wait to be able to win this prize.
The three criteria for choosing the Ballon d’Or
Note that for this mission there is a jury made up of 100 expert journalists belonging to the first 100 countries in the FIFA ranking, who must vote for the different categories. Specifically for the Ballon d’Or, three fundamental elements are taken into account.
The first is linked to individual actions. In this area, Vinícius Júnior and Rodri have shone, although the Spaniard is a defensive midfielder, so his chances of shining can be considered minor. However, Pep Guardiola’s pupil managed to score nine goals and 14 assists for City. As if that wasn’t enough, he was voted the best footballer of Euro 2024 and won the Ballon d’Or at the last Club World Cup. For his part, the Brazilian also stood out at an individual level: he scored 24 goals and 11 clearances during the previous season, where he was decisive in Real Madrid’s most important matches, both in the Champions League (he scored in the final) than in La Liga.
The second element taken into account concerns the collective titles obtained, in which the Madrid player has a slight advantage, since he won the Premier League, the Community Shield and the Club World Cup with the Citizens, in addition to those mentioned above. -above. European Cup with the Spanish team. During this time, Vini won La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup and the Champions League with Madrid (a competition in which they precisely eliminated City). However, the Brazilian’s performance in the Copa América was not good, like that of the entire team. Scratch. The former Flamengo man scored two goals in the competition and Canarinha he said goodbye in the quarter-finals.
The third criterion is the one that harms the South American attacker the most: Fair play. Here the behavior of the candidates is measured, in which Rodri takes a large advantage. While the midfielder is usually held up as an example for his conduct and leadership on the pitch, Vinícius is constantly embroiled in controversies with his rivals, who even go so far as to mock him when he celebrates goals.
Rodri’s milestones
With the decision already made, what happened this Monday at the gala, held at the glamorous Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, was historic for men’s football in Spain. Rodri is the second player born in this country to win this trophy, after Luis Suárez, who won it in 1960. Additionally, he is the first defensive midfielder to win the Ballon d’Or since its invention in 1956.
It was precisely his situation on the pitch that was highlighted in his speech accepting the award, a moment where he recalled other historic players who were never able to get their hands on one: “Today we come reward Spanish football, so many players who didn’t win it and who deserved it, like Xavi, like Iniesta, like Iker, like Busi (Busquets), like so many others. I don’t want to leave anyone behind. side, but it is a victory for Spanish football and especially for the figure of the midfielder. In the end, I give a little visibility to all these important midfielders who have existed over the years. a little more obscure work, but today it has been revealed,” he concluded.
Source: Latercera
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
