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This is a topic better suited for a clinical analysis. But Rodri’s transformation, from a mid-level player at Atletico Madrid to a world-class athlete in the Premier League has always fascinated me.
For some footballers, the Premier League seems like the NBA. Many basketball players improve significantly physically when they move to NBA.
I remember him at Atletico Madrid, and he was nowhere near the player he is now.
I previously mentioned that Spain seemed to possess overwhelming superiority in a tournament where every other team arrived in much worse physical condition than they did for Qatar. There is a reason for this: the Qatar World Cup took place mid-season, in air-conditioned stadiums
. . In this tournament, players have endured intense heat in some venues, and it is taking place at the end of a season that involves an ever-increasing number of matches.
Yet, Spain looked as though they were playing a winter World Cup.
It could also be the "Flick effect" at Barcelona, a club that has contributed eight players to the national squad. Just look back at the Bayern team during the pandemic, hilarious Bayern, especifically the "before and after" regarding Goretzka or Lewandowski’s resurgence last year.
That said, the player who has truly amazed me is Pedro Porro. Like Rodri, he is a physical beast—someone who went from being a mid-level player in La Liga to winning two Ballons d'Or, a feat no one could have imagined back then.
As a final thought: football fans are cynical. They harshly criticize doping in cycling, yet they believe Spain’s,. World Cup, PSG era or other eras success was merely a matter of ball possession, ignoring the immense physical effort involved. Of course, the cycling fans themselves are partly to blame; they are the first to be hard on cyclists while turning a blind eye to other sports.
For some footballers, the Premier League seems like the NBA. Many basketball players improve significantly physically when they move to NBA.
I remember him at Atletico Madrid, and he was nowhere near the player he is now.
I previously mentioned that Spain seemed to possess overwhelming superiority in a tournament where every other team arrived in much worse physical condition than they did for Qatar. There is a reason for this: the Qatar World Cup took place mid-season, in air-conditioned stadiums
. . In this tournament, players have endured intense heat in some venues, and it is taking place at the end of a season that involves an ever-increasing number of matches.
Yet, Spain looked as though they were playing a winter World Cup.
It could also be the "Flick effect" at Barcelona, a club that has contributed eight players to the national squad. Just look back at the Bayern team during the pandemic, hilarious Bayern, especifically the "before and after" regarding Goretzka or Lewandowski’s resurgence last year.
That said, the player who has truly amazed me is Pedro Porro. Like Rodri, he is a physical beast—someone who went from being a mid-level player in La Liga to winning two Ballons d'Or, a feat no one could have imagined back then.
As a final thought: football fans are cynical. They harshly criticize doping in cycling, yet they believe Spain’s,. World Cup, PSG era or other eras success was merely a matter of ball possession, ignoring the immense physical effort involved. Of course, the cycling fans themselves are partly to blame; they are the first to be hard on cyclists while turning a blind eye to other sports.
