Rico Lewis makes Ballon d’Or prediction about Manchester City teammate

Manchester City full-back Rico Lewis has revealed that teammate Rodri would be a deserved winner of the prestigious Ballon d’Or award.

The 19-year-old is currently part of Pep Guardiola’s pre-season tour squad of the United States, and is preparing for his third campaign with the Manchester City first-team, having made 50 appearances for the Sky Blues since his debut against Bournemouth in September 2022.

Lewis has already won five trophies with Manchester City, including two Premier League titles and the UEFA Champions League, with the teenager having featured 27 times last season for the Cityzens.

The England Under-21 international has played alongside Manchester City midfielder Rodri on 31 occasions, with the 28-year-old starting 50 matches for Guardiola’s side last season, as the Spaniard won his 11th trophy at the Etihad Stadium.

Rodri, who scored the winning goal in the Champions League Final for Manchester City against Inter Milan in 2023, scored nine goals for the Sky Blues last season, and helped Spain to European Championship glory this summer.

The midfielder has made 257 appearances since signing from Atletico Madrid in 2019, and enjoyed a mammoth individual unbeaten streak prior to the FA Cup final loss to Manchester United at Wembley Stadium in May.

The 28-year-old’s performances for both club and country have led to calls for Rodri to win the prestigious Ballon d’Or award, something Lewis believes the midfielder ‘deserves’.

Speaking to the Manchester City monthly magazine, Lewis said: “He’s got a good chance of being in the high rankings for the Ballon d’Or. In my personal opinion I’d say he deserves to win it, but there’s things that people care about more which is goals and assists.

“If you make that argument as a defensive midfielder, he’s done more than most attacking midfielders in terms of goals and assists. That’s not his main job, his main job is to keep things ticking for us and he does that in abundance. Like I say, in my opinion he deserves to win it.”

Rodri’s return date to the City Football Academy is currently unknown, with the Spain international having been withdrawn during the European Championship final against England at half-time due to injury.