After winning the Ballon d’Or last night, Rodri reflected on his life on and off the pitch and how hard work paid off for him.
FourFourTwo was there at a dramatic ceremony in Paris to watch Rodri's coronation. It was a night of shocks, likely award winners in the Yashin Trophy and Kopa Trophy, and six Englishmen getting voted in the top 30 of the final standings.
Just moments after his victory in Paris, meanwhile, Rodri was interviewed on stage by hosts Didier Drogba and Sandy Heribert. The Spanish midfielder explained how developing his game made him more all-round.
Ballon d'Or winner Rodri: “I had to change my mindset”
“I was a traditional midfielder,” Rodri began, “But once I realised if I wanted to get better, I had to do better in the last third, [with] assists, goals. That’s why in the last few years, my presence, in that sense, in terms of goals has been increased.
“It’s something you have to [adopt that] mindset to improve. It’s the modern holding midfielder role: you have to be like a striker [and] like to play in the [final third].”
When asked what he is like as a person off the pitch, Rodri – ranked at no.5 in FourFourTwo's list of the best players in the world right now – acknowledged that not much is known about him, partly because he is not active on social platforms. The holding midfielder is introverted away from the glare – but wants to be a leader.
“I know, because [I’m not on] social media, and I understand that people don’t know me much. I’m just a normal guy, enjoy the sport, enjoy my profession, try to be the best version of myself every day,” he said. “I try to be a good person, good to my teammates, try to be a leader.
“And this is my role, I’m a very calm person, until I get upset! But I think this is the main thing: [I’m] a normal guy, try to say to the kids that you don’t need to be crazy, you can be a normal guy, try to do your best.”
Rodri finished ahead of Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham and Dani Carvajal, who finished second, third and fourth respectively, something which led to Real Madrid not sending any representatives to the ceremony.
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Rodri, however, didn’t want to make too much of their absence, as he was just grateful to be winning the gong among the world’s best.
“The players that surround me, [they are] amazing players, you can see, at the highest level, so young,” he said after the public unified snub from Los Blancos. “[I’m] so proud to be elected as the best from these guys, so I just want to say thank you again to the people that recognise my value in the game.”
The midfielder also provided an update on his injury, after leaving the match against Arsenal last month having damaged his anterior cruciate ligament. He's not expected to play again this season – but is coming on leaps and bounds in his recovery.
“I’m feeling much better,” Rodri said. “Of course, [it was a] big, big injury for me. You know, it’s part of life, of football, we have that risk. It’s the first time in my career, so I just try to take care of myself.
“Look, the best part of this, I try to enjoy with my family [in my] free time, try to rest a little bit. I try to be positive, to recover good and come back stronger.”
