“Vinícius has to improve in some facets, but in others he is an example to follow”

The midfielder of Manchester City and the Spanish team Rodri Hernández assured this Thursday that the Brazilian of Real Madrid Vinícius Júnior “will have to improve in some facets, like everyone”, although “in others he is also an example to follow”, at the same time that He defended that winning the Ballon d’Or has not “changed anything” for him.

“Say something nice about Vinícius? Yes, of course. Really, the fact that there is a rivalry, or that he plays on one team and I on another, or that he tries to fight for the Ballon d’Or with me, doesn’t mean that “Be able to value the player he is, the player he has become, for me one of the best in the world,” praised the man from Madrid in an interview with GQ Spain as a winner of the GQ Men Of The Year 2024 awards.

The midfielder also addressed the Brazilian’s personality, “a boy who will have to improve in some facets, for sure”, although “like everyone.” “I also have facets to improve and he is very young. But in other facets he is also an example to follow: his willingness to help others, the social conscience he has,” he praised.

The Spaniard won by only 41 votes over Vinícius in the race for the Ballon d’Or, an award that has not changed his life. “Not even when I was nobody and didn’t earn anything did I do eccentricities. Now that I’m in a very good moment, neither,” he defended. “I have always known the path to success, to do things well, and nothing is going to change for me. It is clear that it is a historical milestone for me, for my family, for my country,” he added.

“Perhaps I have broken that media barrier. Perhaps a player who is not so well-known in the media has won the Ballon d’Or. Inevitably, because of the club I am in and for having won things, I have become more popular, but it is true that nothing compared to the rest of my competitors,” he said about his choice.

And Rodri sees himself as “a different person” who “is more similar” to children who start playing football. “It’s closer to them because their life is similar to theirs. I’m not saying that mine is better, just different. But it’s essential that they have different mirrors in which to look at themselves and choose. Because if you only have a prototype of a role model, continue for the kids, in the end everyone will want to be that. I come here to open the door that you can be another way and achieve success,” he commented.

“I understand that people find it strange that such a relevant figure does not have that impact through the networks. But there are other ways, there are other ways to have that impact. Mine is through the field, through what I do about green,” he said about not having a profile on social networks, although he acknowledged that “with this new role” he will “have to do other different things” to interact with followers.

Rodri Hernández does not see himself as “a player that you say: ‘That’s a captain, that’s a reference on the field’!”, although he does believe that he leads “throughout the game.” “I don’t need to give shouts to command. If you are able to order and handle yourself well on the field, the rest ends up following you. You can be very good, but not get the team to play what you want. Bringing together those virtues is important” , he explained.

“I am a person with character, with ambition to win. Therefore, when I am on the field I try to give my all and when I am off I dedicate myself to learning. I am starting to get old and be a captain both in the national team and in my club and That requires a different role. You are not born learned. You have to learn to be a leader, to communicate with your colleagues, because you have to hit the right buttons at the right time. Many times yelling is not the best, it depends on the moment. he reflected.

The midfielder is clear that this award gives him “a dose of leadership and confidence to continue doing things well”, because “now people listen to you, something that does not always happen.” “But neither my family, nor my environment nor I want it to change us excessively,” he reiterated.

“Maybe it gives you a little more confidence to reinforce everything you’re already doing,” he added. “Obviously, when you are rewarded for the work you have done, you say: ‘I am on the right path, I am going to continue working on this.’ It is an exercise in mental strength, how a normal athlete changes into a winning athlete. In moments of doubts, you have to bring out your best version and there are not many who do it,” he expressed.