HAS Rodri will always remain Paris. He arrived in the French capital on crutches for his convalescence and left bathed in gold, with the highest honor for a footballer under his arm. The player of Manchester City and from the Spanish team he received the baton of Luis Suarez and he became, 60 years later, the second men’s Ballon d’Or in national football.
A triumph which recognizes the normality of a footballer profile in danger of extinction. Rodri is, in addition to being an exceptional footballer, a normal guy. It is the culmination of a career that began at Atlético de Madrid, under the orders of Françoise Alcoyhis first coach within the red and white academy who played a fundamental role in the development of Rodri Ballon d’Or.
“Seeing how he won the Ballon d’Or was a source of pride as a coach and as a Spaniard. Nobody knew Rodriours was his first team. It’s a pleasure to see him now win this award. This is a reality of world football. “He has become the best pivot in the world,” assures Alcoy to OKDIARIO.
Fran was his “discoverer” of football. The first which placed him as a pivot during his time in youth football. “I brought my grain of sand and perhaps important because at that age, what you explain to children makes a big difference to them. But he was around world-class coaches and he learned from each of them. “I am very proud of him because I have enormous affection for him,” admits the coach.
Rodri has started to stand out since he set foot in the red and white quarry. Both for their physical and intellectual condition. “What caught my attention the most was his way of being. He has innate qualities for football, but his entourage is very influential and healthy. His parents, who I know, gave him a very good education so that he could have peace of mind. “It’s very important.”
With Fran Alcoy, Rodri began his training phase and was dazzling in every tournament he participated in. He improved with each training session, both in the way he played and in his interpretation of the game. “He came to training with a lot of enthusiasm. He was attentive to what you explained to him and carried it out with great rigor. I came to learn. I remember one day we were in the car, because I took him to a game when his family couldn’t make it, and we talked about tactics. At 12 years old I was already reasoning and hallucinating, I thought “what are you saying to me kid”“He was and still is very intelligent,” Alcoy recalled.
Passing through the hands of coaches like Simeone and Guardiola, with opposing styles, allowed Rodri to mold himself and interpret the game from different points of view. “He is very influential in the play of his teams, it shows when he is not playing. He did a lot of things well. And lately, he’s also been scoring goals. He already did it with me. He has recovered this facet. And when he wants to play in central defense, he can do it. He has concepts and qualities without problem. “Luis Enrique already tried it during the last World Cup,” Fran Alcoy told the newspaper.
