Kylian Mbappe has admitted his surprise that Manchester City Rodri’s midfielder won the Ballon d’Or before the 2024 team of Real Madrid Vinicius Junior.
Vinicius was the favorite that recorded the most prestigious unit price of football, and Madrid’s officials were so stunned by the decision to hand over the award to Rodri that they boycotted the entire event.
In an interview with Le ParisienMbappe was questioned on Paris Saint-Germain striker Ousmane Dembele’s chances of winning the balloon d’Or or this year, and he argued, Rodri’s victory means that something is possible in the race.
“What is a balloon d’Or player? Rodri, is he a balloon d’Or player for you?” He started. “At first he wasn’t one for me, I thought the balloon d’E he would go to Vinicius, but in the end it was Rodri who got it.
“If I had told you that three months ago, they would have said to me:” What are you talking about? ”
“Today we don’t know who the balloon is going to be on, except that nobody should be excluded that all players can be rewarded, maybe even a goalkeeper.”
Before the recent victory of Real Madrid via City in the play-offs of the Champions League, Manager Carlo Ancelotti insisted to boycott the Ballon d’Or ceremony to support Vinicius.
“I don’t think it was the wrong decision,” emphasized Ancelotti. “We didn’t want to participate because we thought that Vinicius was the winner of the balloon.
“And that doesn’t mean that we have no respect for Rodri who won the balloon because he is a fantastic player. But I think we thought, and I thought Rodri deserved to win the year before.”