Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola commented on midfielder Rodri winning the Ballon d'Or.

Axar.az reports that he said at a press conference:

"Xavi and Iniesta couldn’t win this award because Messi was around at that time. No one could defeat Messi; only Cristiano could do that. If Cristiano was a beast, Messi was the father of the beast. Both of them have done incredible things over the last 15-20 years. So, perhaps Xavi and Iniesta were deserving of this award as well. I think Rodri won something that all of Spanish football deserves.

Did Vinicius deserve this award more? Maybe, but what’s done is done. The voting is done by journalists, not by some wealthy groups. The whole world votes for this award, not just one country."

It’s worth noting that Rodri won the 2024 Ballon d'Or.