"A perfect year, you deserve it" - Sergio Aguero sends message to Manchester City star as he's nominated for 2024 Ballon d'Or

Sergio Aguero has backed former Manchester City teammate Rodri to win the Ballon d'Or later this year. The Spaniard has been named alongside 29 other players for the award which will be handed out at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris on October 28.

Rodri, a defensive midfielder by trade, racked up nine goals and 14 assists in 50 games across competitions last term. He helped Manchester City win their fifth league title in the last six seasons and played in six of Spain's seven games in their triumphant Euro 2024 campaign.

Aguero, who played 39 times alongside Rodri in their two seasons at Manchester City (2019-21), took to X and wrote:

"Un año perfecto , se lo merece. Vamossssssss Rodri 😎😎🤟🏽 [Translated: A perfect year, you deserve it. Come on Rodri 😎😎🤟🏽]

Rodri and Aguero also share another connection, with the two having played for Atletico Madrid in the past, although during different periods. The former is widely regarded as one of the heavy favorites for the award alongside Vinicius Jr. and Erling Haaland.

Rodri spoke about his chances of winning the Ballon d'Or award recently and admitted that the more offensive players may have an advantage when it comes to securing votes.

The full Ballon d'Or 2024 nominees list including Manchester City quartet

Rodri isn't the only Manchester City player nominated for the prestigious individual award. Phil Foden, Erling Haaland, and Ruben Dias are also in contention to become the first City player to win the Ballon d'Or.

Here is the full list of nominees:

Martin Odegaard - Arsenal
Ruben Dias - Man City
Kylian Mbappe - Real Madrid
Hakan Calhanoglu - Inter
Bukayo Saka - Arsenal
Federico Valverde - Real Madrid
Artem Dovbyk - Roma
Vitinha - PSG
Emiliano Martinez - Aston Villa
Mats Hummels - Roma
Alejandro Grimaldo - Bayer Leverkusen
Lautaro Martinez - Inter
Dani Olmo - Barcelona
Harry Kane - Bayern Munich
Phil Foden - Man City
Erling Haaland - Man City
Vinicius Jr - Real Madrid
Toni Kroos - Real Madrid
Ademola Lookman - Atalanta
Nico Williams - Athletic Bilbao
Cole Palmer - Chelsea
William Saliba - Arsenal
Declan Rice - Arsenal
Lamine Yamal - Barcelona
Jude Bellingham - Real Madrid
Dani Carvajal - Real Madrid
Rodri - Man City
Antonio Rudiger - Real Madrid
Florian Wirtz - Bayer Leverkusen
Granit Xhaka - Bayer Leverkusen

This also marks the first time since 2003 that neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Lionel Messi have been named in the list of Ballon d'Or nominees. The latter has lifted the golden trophy a record eight times, while Ronaldo has five wins to his name.