THOUSANDS of Spain fans have shown their admiration for Manchester City star Rodri at their Euro 2024 victory parade.
Luis de la Fuente’s side beat England 2-1 in the final to bag their fourth European Championship.
Rodri played a crucial role in Spain‘s success, starting in all but one game as his side beat the likes of Germany and France on their way to Euros glory.
The midfielder has had an amazing few years which includes winning multiple Premier League titles and the Champions League with City.
Spain fans showed their appreciation for Rodri as they cheered on their heroes at a victory parade in Madrid.
Supporters jumped up and down singing: “Rodri’s on fire, your defence is terrified.”
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Rodri, 28, has enjoyed a brilliant 18 months which saw him break the record for longest unbeaten streak in club football.
He went 74 matches without tasting defeat with City – until the FA Cup final against Manchester United in May.
Rodri is now second favourite to win the Ballon d’Or this year, behind Vincius Junior.
His odds of winning the award were 6/1 before the Euros but he is now offered at 9/4 after he was awarded the Player of the Tournament in Germany.
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Rodri deserves the Ballon d’Or
By Martin Blackburn
SPAIN coach Luis de la Fuente called for Rodri to be awarded the prestigious Ballon d’Or in October – and his club are in full agreement.
It was 2008 the last time a Premier League player picked up the prize – a certain Cristiano Ronaldo during his first spell at Manchester United.
And you have to go back six years to find the last time a midfielder was crowned the best player on the planet – when Luka Modric topped the charts.
Surely those trends will be bucked this autumn though. The 28-year-old colossus is head and shoulders above the rest in every sense.
Real Madrid pair Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham both deserve to be in the frame – but no footballer on the planet has had a year like the Manchester City midfielder.
Since early February 2023, he has tasted defeat only twice – the FA Cup final against Manchester United and – surprisingly – an international loss to Scotland.
He led City to the treble – famously scoring the winner in the Champions League final in June last year – and was key to them retaining the Prem crown in May, going through the league campaign unbeaten.
And the accolades have been coming for his nation too – he was voted Player of the Tournament as Spain were crowned Euro 2024 champions on Sunday.
He may not have the glamour of some of the previous Ballon d’Or winners but there would be no more deserving winner.
Harry Redknapp named Rodri in his team of the tournament, saying: “The Player of the Tournament, Rodri, world class.
“We all know how good this lad is, he’s becoming an all-time great in that position. He just reads the game so well and does a little bit of everything.
“I’ll be honest, when I saw him come off in the final, I thought England might be in luck! Spain deserved the win though and this lad deserved to be Player of the Tournament.”
Maybe Kane really is cursed as trophy drought goes on… he may never get a better chance with England
IT now seems as though he really is cursed. Along with the rest of us, writes Charlie Wyett.
Tragically, unbelievably, Harry Kane’s agonising search for a trophy still continues and you know have to wonder whether he will ever actually manage it.
Certainly for England, in any case.
Kane has now suffered defeat in three major club finals and two finals of the European Championships.
Last night, the Three Lions captain was so ineffective that he was replaced by Ollie Watkins just after the hour.
Like much of this tournament, he really struggled to make the impact when England needed him, not that he had much service.
He had one shot in the first half and that was Rodri, who subsequently injured himself and went off at the break.
When Cole Palmer struck that brilliant equaliser, Kane was off on his feet from the bench, only for the national team to get another kick in the bo**ocks at the end.
Kane was substituted in both the games against Switzerland and Holland which England went on to win but on this occasion, he could only witness a gut-wrenching twist just when it looked as though Gareth Southgate’s team had dug their way out of trouble.
The Bayern Munich striker suffered the World Cup 2018 semi-final loss against Croatia, endured heartbreak against Italy in the Euro2020 final and then missed from the spot in the World Cup 2022 quarter-final against France.
He really thought that this was his time, even though England did not play well in Germany.
Kane will know that he will have more opportunities with England. But not many more.
The World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico seems a long way away and it will surely be under a new manager. Will England be better than they are now? Probably not.
And we are all left to wonder how much better England would have been with a fit and firing Kane at his very best.
Read the full verdict on the curse of Harry Kane…
Or check out all of Charlie Wyett’s Euro 2024 stories…
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
