Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri was a deserving recipient of the Ballon d'Or, said his proud club manager Pep Guardiola, who chose not to criticize Real Madrid's absence from Monday night's awards ceremony, stating the decision was theirs to make.
"All of Manchester City and our fans are incredibly proud of him," Guardiola said ahead of Wednesday's League Cup fourth-round match against Tottenham Hotspur.
"We could never have imagined years ago that a player from City would receive such a prestigious award."
The 28-year-old Rodri, who guided City to a fourth consecutive Premier League title last season and helped Spain clinch victory at Euro 2024, triumphed over Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr. and Jude Bellingham for the honor.
Guardiola, asked for his thoughts on Real canceling their trip to the Paris ceremony in anticipation of Vinicius Jr. not winning the award, shrugged and said, "It's up to them.
"If they want to congratulate, that's fine. If not, that's fine," Guardiola added. "We at Manchester City are not here to judge what the other clubs do."
The Spaniard pointed out that City's Norway striker Erling Haaland attended the ceremony as a finalist last year after scoring more than 50 goals and winning the treble, ultimately losing out on the Ballon d'Or to Lionel Messi.
"I said to him that just being there (among the finalists), he should be so, so happy, and I said the same to Rodri. Last season, Erling should win, yes," Guardiola said.
"It's voted by journalists. It's not an elite group of people who vote. It's people all around the world who vote, not just one country. There are different opinions, and that's what makes football nice, no?"
Guardiola said Vinicius Jr. would also have been a deserving winner and congratulated Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti for capturing the award for best manager.
"This event has to be a joy; people have to accept the results," he said.
Guardiola said he had no issue with Haaland skipping Monday's gala event to travel to Sweden instead and cheer on his friend Erik Botheim, who won the Allsvenskan league title with Malmö FF on Monday.
"(Haaland) and his girlfriend, Isabelle, will be parents soon; we only get a couple of days off," the Spaniard said.
"He went to the ceremony last season. Sometimes you go, sometimes you don't. He's free to do what he wants. He will be really happy for Rodri; I have no doubt of that."
City, who have a one-point lead over Liverpool atop the Premier League table, face one of the toughest draws in Wednesday's fourth-round tie at Spurs.
City beat Tottenham 2-0 away in their last league match in May, thanks to a pair of Haaland goals in a crucial game on their way to winning the title again.
