Manchester City suffered a disappointing defeat in their latest Champions League match.
Tuesday night saw City lose 4-1 to Sporting CP, giving them their third consecutive defeat of the season, something which has not happened since 2018.
Phil Foden put the away side 1-0 up after just four minutes, but a hat-trick from Viktor Gyokeres and one goal from Max Araujo saw the Manchester club’s disappointing run of results continue.
Prior to the match, one of the Portuguese club’s star players shared his thoughts on a key figure in City’s squad and a significant thing that happened to him recently.
- Man City 2024/25 squad cost in full: Transfer fees and stats for every player
Morten Hjulmand hails Rodri after Ballon d’Or win
When asked by TNT Sports Brazil before helping his side beat City, Morten Hjulmand gave this response when asked if he was surprised by Rodri winning the 2024 Ballon d’Or.
He said: “No, I wasn’t surprised.
“When I watch Manchester City or Spain, I see a top player and I think he deserves to win the Ballon d’Or, and I think he is a big inspiration for all the midfielders in the world.
“When they look at him, they want to learn from him.”
Man United have been linked with Hjulmand
Last month’s Ballon d’Or ceremony saw the Spaniard beat the likes of Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham and his own City teammate Erling Haaland to the illustrious prize.
In doing so, Rodri played a key role in seeing City win their fourth consecutive Premier League trophy as well as Spain’s journey to win the 2024 European Championship in Germany.
Focusing back on Hjulmand, The Sun reported that Manchester United had made an offer to sign the Danish international during the previous January transfer window.
More recently, Denmark manager Brian Riemer backed Hjulmand to join a top Premier League side in the future, saying this about the midfielder last month.
He said: “I spent two years in the Premier League and I think he has the necessary qualities to play for the six/seven best clubs in the English league.
“Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City. At a certain point in his career, I believe he will arrive at one of these teams.
“His character, his leadership, his personality, his communication are not very common in today’s football, and I was at many clubs, in Copenhagen, Brentford, Anderlecht.
“It reminds us of the defensive midfielders of the past, who controlled the entire game, who led the teams, you don’t see that much nowadays.
“It’s something rare what Hjulmand has. I’m a big fan of his, I think we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg with Hjulmand.”
With Sporting boss Ruben Amorim set to take charge of the Red Devils later this month, a potential future transfer swoop for Hjulmand could be something to keep an eye on.
However, from the City fans’ point of view, they’ll presumably be pleased to hear that another one of Europe’s top midfielders thinks so highly of Rodri.
