Manchester City star, Rodri insists he ‘cannot respect’ Real Madrid after Ballon d’Or snub

Manchester City midfielder, Rodri has insisted he has lost ‘respect’ for Spanish club,  Real Madrid for snubbing the Ballon d’Or ceremony.

The Spanish superstar was crowned the best player in the world at the Ballon d’Or ceremony in October in a move that shocked some football lovers as it was expected Real Madrid star Vinicius Jnr would win the accolade.

When news broke that the selection panel had chosen the Manchester City midfielder Rodri as the winner of the prestigious award, Real Madrid and Vinicius decided not to attend the ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet.

The Spanish giants had hoped that if their Brazilian forward was not given the nod, right-back Dani Carvajal might be handed the gong after winning La Liga, the Champions League, and the Euros. 

But when the result was leaked that Rodri was, in fact, the winner, Real reacted furiously by forbidding club representatives from attending.

Now, Rodri has hit back at Madrid’s stance and fumed that he ‘cannot respect’ the club’s decision to not attend the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris.

‘I can’t describe the emotion [of winning the Ballon d’Or]. In my generation [we] only see two guys winning the trophy [Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo],’ he said.

‘I cannot respect the decision [of Madrid not to turn up to the ceremony,’ 

‘In sport and in life, it’s important to win. But I think even more how to lose, and I say always the same – it was my moment, I didn’t want to speak about others.

‘They didn’t want to be there – I want to be with my club, with my family, the people that were there and clapped me, and that was a fantastic moment,’ he added.