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Rob Palmer / ESPN commentator
Malaga
Friday, 1 November 2024, 16:24
In the Bernabéu stadium offices, there's a lackey tidying up all the president's executive toys that have been thrown around the room.
Over ... at the training ground Vinícius Junior is stomping around in the darkest of moods. Elsewhere, the club's private jet is still full of fuel and the in-house television station doesn't know what to do with hours of special programming.
It should be a week when Spain is celebrating worldwide recognition for football dominance; instead, the headlines have been dominated by the petulance of the Spanish giants.
Real Madrid accepted coming second in a democratic vote in the same manner as Donald Trump! It was expected that Viní Jr. would be crowned as the "best footballer in the world" at the prestigious Ballon d'Or event. The club had presumed their superstar was going to be honoured, so they fired up the jet and prepared the airwaves for some very special shows.
When word reached them that the name in the main envelope was Rodri, all plans were cancelled and a terse statement was released, saying they don't go where they don't get respected.
It was a classless reaction. The fact that Carlo Ancelotti was set to be honoured, the club would pick up a collective award and Kylian Mbappé would take the prestigious Gerd Muller trophy suggest that there was plenty of respect.
It's also wrong to say that Uefa was behind the vote. It is a single respected journalist from each of the top 100 rated countries in the world who votes.
The fact that Real had so many outstanding players may have cost Vinicius. From the shortlist of 30, the journalist had to choose 10 and divide points. It was 15 for their top player and a single point for the 10th. The Ecuadorian judge chose Toni Kroos (Scotland and El Salvador opted for Jude Bellingham as their leading player).
The vote was clearly split between the players of the Spanish, European and World champions and come the final count, Rodri emerged as the winner.
He was prominent in Spain winning the Euros, Manchester City winning the Premier League and was described by Pep Guardiola as the "best midfielder in the world". His goal had won the Champions League the previous year.
Based on the criteria of individual ability and collective achievement, it was a close call. The other factor was fair play. This is where Rodri may just pip Viní who does like to play on the edge by winding up opponents and referees.
So, congratulations Rodri. Well done to Aitana Bonmatí for winning the Women's award and her club Barcelona who are the team of the year. Lamine Yamal was a clear winner as the young player and Jenni Hermoso was recognised for her contribution to the world game.
It was almost a clean sweep for Spanish football and deserved to be celebrated. As Rodri said: "It's not a victory for me but for Spanish football."
If only Real Madrid had been there to enjoy the party!
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