Sport
“Rodri Deserved 2023 Ballon d’Or but Vinicius Deserved 2024” – Ancelotti
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti believes Manchester City’s Rodri should have won the 2023 Ballon d’Or. Speaking ahead of his team’s Champions League clash against City, Ancelotti shared his thoughts on past and present award winners.
Lionel Messi took home the 2023 Ballon d’Or, finishing ahead of stars like Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Kevin De Bruyne, and Rodri, who placed fifth. But in 2024, the Manchester City midfielder finally claimed the prize, beating Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham, who finished second and third.
That result didn’t sit well with the Madrid camp. In protest, the club, including Ancelotti, skipped the awards ceremony in Paris. While the Italian coach praised Rodri’s talent, he made it clear that he felt Vinicius should have been the 2024 winner.
“I don’t think skipping the ceremony was a bad decision,” Ancelotti said. “We believed Vini Jr. was the rightful winner. But that doesn’t mean we don’t respect Rodri. He’s a fantastic player, and in our view, he should have won it the year before.”
Ghanaian Referee, Daniel Laryea, who officiated the Nigeria vs Morocco game in AFCON gets interviews and shared his experience.
The referee reveals how it was his first time in a semi final and was kind of nervous. “I’ve been to three AFCON tournaments, but this is the first time I’ve been in a semi-final.”
“So when coaches choose you for that game, they know your skills and what you can do. But of course, you feel a little nervous because of the level of the match.”
Nigerian Footballer, Bright Osayi-Samuel , react to match as Super Eagles lose to Morocco.
The player calls out CAF for their referee appointment. He shares how the Ghanaian Referee was tough on the field and made bad choices.
“One thing I would say is that the referee was really bad. I’m not saying that was the reason we lost. He is making really bad choices and it’s really tough to watch because we have referees like this in big games like today.
He then praises Morocco for a good game “But Morocco did really well.”
Super Eagles Coach, Eric Chelle speaks and shared why Nigeria lost the AFCON match to Morocco.
It can be noted that the match was held on the 14th of January, 2026. Nigeria lost the match with a draft in the penalties, 4-2.
During a recent interview, Chelle shared his observations about the match and shared why they lost.
“From a technical point of view, the Super Eagles weren’t at the same level as we displayed in our other matches.”
“I don’t want to say the reason was fatigue, but the truth is that we lacked movement and power.”
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