"It's been tough because for a Ballon d'Or winner, suddenly stopping, then having to readjust yourself a year later and saying I want to be the same again is difficult. This year has been very tough, but he has recovered well from not playing for a year. There's always some muscle issue. But he's incredibly eager to go to the World Cup."
"He's training really well, and you only have to look at him to see it. He came back to playing and in his first match, he was almost the same Rodri he used to be, so the confidence we, as a family, have in him is absolute. Now we're asking him to manage his efforts a bit to get back into form and be ready for the World Cup."
Rodri won the 2024 Ballon d'Or after key roles in Manchester City's treble and Spain's Euros triumph. The midfielder missed most of last season with an ACL injury and has since returned to regular selection, making 14 appearances and 10 league starts this season. His contract expires in 2027 and transfer links to Real Madrid have surfaced as negotiations reportedly continue. His father said the player is comfortable at City but acknowledged uncertainty and recovery challenges after a year out. Since the 2023-24 season Rodri missed 53 Premier League matches; City won 31 of those (58.5%), while the club's league win rate with him is 71.3% (62 wins from 87 matches).
Read at Soccer News
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