Manchester City v Real Madrid: Carlo Ancelotti defends Ballon d’Or snub
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti decided to boycott last year’s Ballon d’Or ceremony for his club.
The Spanish Giants are away from the famous ceremony in Paris in October because they think Vinicius Jr deserves the award instead of Manchester City midfielder Rodri.
Real Madrid’s move has been widely criticized, with those who objected to it as petty and showed a lack of respect.
Additionally, Ancelotti has the opportunity to receive a reward in person after being appointed coach of the year.
However, before clashing with Manchester City at Etihad Stadium in Tuesday’s Champions League play-off, former Chelsea, Juventus and AC Milan coaches, said: “I don’t think it’s a wrong decision.
“We think Vini is the winner of Ballon d’Or. That doesn’t mean we don’t respect Rodri because he’s a great player. I think Rodri should have won the game the year before.”
In 2023, Lionel Messi won the record-breaking eighth award after helping Paris Saint-Germain win the French League title. He then moved to the Miami Major League costumes and won MLS and Mexico.
Rodri is an indispensable figure in City’s 2022-23 treble success, winning the Champions League final, winning the victory over Inter Milan.
City manager Pep Guardiola said his club’s resentment towards the incident “absolutely no”.
“I’m happy for Rodri, but Vinicius also had an extraordinary year,” he said. “He deserves it, like the past (Lionel) Messi and Cristiano (Ronaldo) fights for this.
Although Rodri missed the game due to a cross-knee injury, Vinicius JR is expected to start with the lack of many key defenders on the injured real team. Antonio Rudiger, Eder Militao, David Alaba and Dani Carvajal are all missing, and Ancelotti describes this situation as an “emergency”.
But while City also had major problems this semester and lost 5-1 at Arsenal eight days ago, Ancelotti was not an easy night.
“It seems like a Crasico because we played each other a lot in this game,” he said.
“I still think they are one of the best teams in Europe and have one of the best managers. He has been trying to play well and has brought a lot to football in terms of offensive play.
“He is an innovator and I continue to believe in him. It’s a nightmare, preparing for the game with him because he always has the idea that makes you think.”
