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In all fairness, Rodri's no Fernandinho, another of our underrated, unsung heroes. I recall his first match, where after two minutes he dwelled on the ball, had it taken off his toes & in the panic to retrieve it, he could have arguably had a penalty awarded against him.
He wasn't used to the frantic pace of the PL & during his first two seasons, he kept getting tackled believing he had more time than he did. However, with a 36 year old Fern on the wane, Plodri started to become Rodri.
Once fully adjusted to the pace of the PL, & now shouldering the responsibility of the No 6 role on his own after the depature of Fernandinho & the failure of Kalvin Phillips, Rodri truly came into his own. So much so, that the footballing world named his position after him. There can be no higher accolade or recognition of his talents.
Some may not rate him as City's best player, but over the last three seasons he's been by far our most important. It's just a pity his fears of physical, mental & emotional burnout came to pass, but that's on City, not Rodri.
The City greats of Yaya, Silva, Aguero & KDB all went before him & rarely even got into the PL team of the year, such was the cartel & the medias hatred of City. But last night proved to be better late than never for all Sky Blues.
We all know Haaland should've won last season, but for emotional reasons it was awarded to the brilliant, legendary but ultimately undeserving Messi. It's a vote that still grates with me if I'm being honest, as clearly the best player on the planet at that point didn't win because of football's sentiment toward Messi, who alongside Pelé & Maradona is in the top three players to ever kick a ball imo.
Watching Rodders win made me cast my mind back to Kaka bursting out in tears at the thought of leaving AC Milan for City. RVP opting for the Rags after we messed him about. Isco opting for Real which was understandable. Messi using us time & time again as a bargaining tool as he bankrupted Barça. Pogba, Sanchez, Fred & Maguire all opting for Old Toilet ahead of City, but last night must have made all bar Messi think what could've been in East Manchester.
This award & our recent success is the best advert ever for aspiring footballers, & none of this would have been possible without HRH Sheikh Mansour, Khaldoon, Soriano, Txiki & the man many labeled the Bald Fraud, Pep Guardiola. I thank them all for the best footballing times of my life.
What a fuckin time to be a City fan! We're well & truly blessed. )(