Rodri has had the chance of playing against Lionel Messi on several instances.
The Manchester City midfielder played against Messi during his time in England as well as for Atletico Madrid and Villareal in La Liga.
Like most players to have ever played the game, Rodri also has a lot of respect for the Argentine legend.
So much so that when Rodri won the Ballon d’Or, he admitted that his dream was to always play with Messi as well as Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Spaniard said via Sky Sports News: “I was a kid watching Messi and Cristiano lifting these kind of trophies every year. My dream was to play one day with them, never to stand here talking to you right now [after winning the Ballon d’Or].”
It was reported in August that Messi was close to signing for Manchester City from Barcelona in 2020 — a year after Rodri headed to the Etihad Stadium.
- READ MORE: Who is Rodri? Get to know Man City’s modest midfield maestro who won a Champions League final
Rodri says “decisive” Erling Haaland is better than Lionel Messi now
However, the four-time Premier League winner’s childhood dream did not come to fruition as the World Cup winner decided to stay at his boyhood club at the time.
Much like the three-time Champions League winner, the 28-year-old is also a Ballon d’Or winner.
When quizzed about which player he regards the best in the world, Rodri named Messi as the greatest of all time but currently, he feels Erling Haaland is even superior to the Inter Miami forward.
The midfield maestro told El Partidazo de COPE: “Messi, although not today. Right now, the most decisive player in terms of numbers is Haaland. He is the only one who can come close to these two beasts [Messi and Ronaldo] in terms of numbers.”
Craig Burley hailed Haaland as “world-class” as he continues to dominate world football since signing for Manchester City in the summer of 2022.
Much like Rodri, Haaland believes Messi is the greatest player in the history of the game as well.
Unlike Messi, the Norwegian striker is playing his football in Europe — where the best leagues in the world are.
- READ MORE: How Erling Haaland responded to Lionel Messi winning the Ballon d’Or is embarrassing for Vinicius Jr
Pep Guardiola claimed Haaland’s Champions League record is better than Messi at the same age
In February, Pep Guardiola claimed Haaland was superior to Messi in terms of the 24-year-old’s exploits in the Champions League in comparison to the Barcelona legend’s at the same age.
“Mentally, he’s always, you know, ‘Score one goal, go [for] another one, second goal, [now score] the third.’ You see his numbers at his age. In the Champions League, it’s amazing. Not even Messi, Cristiano had these numbers at his age. But everywhere, the numbers are unbelievable.”
“Scores goals with us, yeah and Salzburg and BVB [Borussia Dortmund]. He scores goals everywhere, so when you score everywhere all the time, you have a special mentality. That helps him have a special mentality as a football player and attributes and skills and we are delighted to have him.”
Messi predicted Haaland to win the Ballon d’Or after beating him to the award last year.
The former Paris Saint-Germain phenomenon seems to hold the Manchester City marksman in high esteem.
Haaland would be inspired by how consistently prolific Messi was throughout his career.
The former Borussia Dortmund striker would certainly appreciate Rodri’s words of praise.
