- Rodri is out for the season with an ACL injury but won the award in October
- He took to the Etihad field before Tottenham game with his trophy in hand
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Manchester City midfielder Rodri paraded his Ballon d’Or trophy around the Etihad before his side’s game against Tottenham on Saturday evening.
The Spaniard controversially lifted the trophy at the end of last month ahead of Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jnr, becoming the first Premier League player to do so since 2008, when Cristiano Ronaldo won the title.
It resulted in Real Madrid boycotting the ceremony as a whole, with neither Vinicius or Jude Bellingham, who finished third, present in France when the award was announced.
A number of stars went vocal with their displeasure with the announcement, but Rodri nonetheless embraced the win despite his season essentially being over. Back in September, he suffered an ACL injury, ruling him out of action for a number of months.
Still, he was all smiles as he picked up the trophy and again when he strolled onto the Etihad pitch before kick-off on Saturday night, and displayed he showed off his trophy to those in attendance inside the ground.
A light show accompanied the presentation, with ‘Rodri’ and ‘Ballon d’Or 2024’ projected onto the field.
Manchester City midfielder Rodri paraded his Ballon d’Or trophy to Manchester City fans at the Etihad on Saturday
The midfielder controversially beat Vinicius Jnr to the award, which was presented last month
He showed it off during a form of light ceremony as fans greeted midfielder before kick off
Behind Rodri, an object lit up with the midfielder’s name on, and he couldn’t hold back his joy as he waved to those in attendance, wearing an all-black suit.
He punched the air, kissed his trophy and waved to the fans as they cheered him on.
The 28-year-old also entered the field of play again right before kick off, just after his manager, Pep Guardiola, made his entrance to a raucous reception having just signed his new contract extension.
His team-mates who were starting to game gave him a guard of honour, with each player congratulating him again before he left the field. Erling Haaland appeared to joke that he should stay on the field.
Rodri was part of the City team that won the Treble in the 2022-23 season, but was also instrumental in the team that won the Premier League for a fourth time in a row last term.
He also won the Player of the Tournament award at Euro 2024, having helped Spain become champions with a win over England in the final.
