Rodri Hernandez, 2004 Ballon d’Or winner and the linchpin of Manchester City under Pep Guardiola, has not closed the door on a hypothetical move to Real Madrid.
Having played for Atletico Madrid does not stop me from playing for Real Madrid
“Having played for Atletico Madrid does not stop me from playing for Real Madrid, there are more players who have made that journey. Not directly, with time. You can’t give up the best clubs in the world,” said the 29-year-old Spanish midfielder on Onda Cero’s‘Radioestadio Noche’ programme.
Have I ever heard that the president and CEO of Madrid like Rodrigo Hernandez? I don’t know… They talk to my agent
Rodri did not hide his desire to return to Spanish football one day: “Would I like to play in Spain and in Madrid in LaLiga? I would like to return, yes. Obviously”.
I have one year left on my contract, there will come a point where we will have to sit down and talk
“Have I ever heard that the president and CEO of Madrid like Rodrigo Hernandez? I don’t know… they don’t talk to me. They talk to my agent,” he said
Rodri confirmed that he is under contract with Manchester City until 2027: “I have one year left on my contract, there will be a point where we will have to sit down and talk and discuss”.
Rodri Hernandez in 2024: “When Real Madrid call you, it’s an honour and you always have to pay attention”
In 2024, Rodri, whose name has been linked several times in recent years with Real Madrid, told Cadena SER that “when Real Madrid calls you it is an honour and you always have to pay attention”.
Rodri remembers his Ballon d’Or: “They wanted to confront Vinicius and me”
“I think they wanted to pit Vinicius and me against each other and not at all… I have great respect for him, for everything he did that year… in the end it is other people, third parties who decide who wins the Ballon d’Or.”
I’m not your typical footballer, I don’t have social media, I don’t have tattoos…
“At the Ballon d’Or Gala I didn’t prepare anything, I didn’t know I was going to win… but then you remember the important moments that have happened in your life as a footballer.”
“With the Ballon d’Or there are many things that change, but what I try to do is not to change myself.”
“Maybe I’m an atypical footballer, I don’t have social media, I don’t have tattoos…”
Rodri: “I was the one who made the decision to leave Atletico for Villarreal”
“The road to success Simeone and Guardiola see it differently; they have very similar things but then they are very different.”
“I was the one who made the decision to leave Atletico for Villarreal… there was a physical issue because it is true that when I was 16 years old I had not had the growth spurt, I did it just when I arrived at Villarreal.”
Simeone knew how to detect what I was missing, he pushed me in the competitive part, in the tactics, in the aggressiveness… I learned a lot with him
“I didn’t expect to return to Atletico, they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse… but I told them that I had an agreement with Villarreal to renew and extend the clause…”.
“Simeone knew how to detect what I was lacking, he pushed me in the competitive part, in the tactics, in the aggressiveness… I learned a lot with him.”
“I didn’t plan to play outside of Spain… but then City came along.”
“I feel like I’m back to being the Rodri we want”
“If I had to choose a moment in which it happened to me, perhaps I would have chosen the one in which it happened… It was good for me to rest, to slow down”.
“Mentally there was a lot of wear and tear. It has allowed me to recharge my batteries and come back with tremendous enthusiasm.”
This season I don’t have so many minutes and I’m much fresher
“This season I don’t have as many minutes and I arrive much fresher.”
“I decided to take some time, stop and prepare well knowing that the decisive part of the season was going to be from January. At the moment it’s going well… I feel that I’m back to being the Rodri that we want.”
Rodri: “Studying a degree helped me to disconnect from football, to get some fresh air”
“Studying for a degree helped me to disconnect from football, to get some fresh air, it freed me to be with people with a more normal day-to-day life.”
As a child, my father always told me that I was a ball hog, that I should let go of the ball
“With my first salary I bought a second-hand car, people tell me that it seems strange, to me it seems the most normal thing in the world. If I bought a big car, I would have spent my whole year’s salary.”
“When I was a child my father always told me that I was very ‘sucker’, that I should let go of the ball.”
Rodri on the World Cup: “We’re going to win”
“Since Luis de la Fuente arrived, we had a very clear slogan: to live each match as a final. We were demonstrating our potential little by little. The key is to have a block in continuous improvement, in continuous aspiration… I am convinced that Spain is going to be there.”
“Spain won a World Cup with two defensive pivots. The wealth that De la Fuente has to be able to combine many pieces is key.”
“We are going to win the World Cup.”
“We never had any doubts with that team, we knew the raw material that was there.”
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