Rodri: Barcelona star ‘the only player who told me I would win the Ballon d’Or’ | OneFootball

Manchester City star and Ballon d’Or winner Rodri has revealed that one leading member of the first-team ranks at Barcelona was his biggest backer for the award.

The player in question? Lamine Yamal.

Rodri, of course, is fresh off a special night on Monday, which saw the Spaniard beat out the competition to be named world football’s very best player for 2024.

The 28-year-old was for months leading up to the gala considered something of an outsider for the Ballon d’Or, with Real Madrid attacker Vinícius Jr. the long-standing frontrunner to bag the prize.

Speaking after defying the odds to lift his first ‘Golden Ball’, Rodri, though, revealed that Barcelona star Lamine Yamal was the ‘one player’ who assured him time and time again that he would in the end emerge triumphant.

During his acceptance speech at The Théâtre du Châtelet, the sidelined midfielder explained:

“There was only one player who told me I would win the Ballon D’Or tonight… that was you Lamine.”

Conor Laird – GSFN