Forget Messi, Rodri will inspire boring Spain to beat Argentina in World Cup final… boring superstar just wins matches

I’M PUTTING my money on Spain to win this World Cup. It’s because of how much ball possession they have and the way they control the game. They do that better than anyone else. Kyle Walker predicts Rodri to guide Spain to win the World Cup Credit: Shutterstock Editorial Lionel Messi means Argentina can’t be written off Credit: Getty Of course, I can’t totally write off Argentina — it would be very silly of me to do that to a team with the great Lionel Messi in it. But I still think Spain will not exactly bore them to death but will produce the same result that they did against France. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Having played at Manchester City under Pep Guardiola, where we played with a similar style, was it the most exciting football continuously? No. It definitely wasn’t a free-flowing attacking footballing team like Liverpool, for example. But what we did do was control games. And, when City went 1-0 up, it was very rare that we then lost that game. Spain have that type of DNA in them and if they get an early goal, and control the match, I can’t see them losing. Sometimes the boring football is winning football. And, believe me, I would happily have taken playing boring football to be in a final now with England having a chance of lifting the World Cup. I wouldn’t care how we did it as long as we won that trophy and put another star on the shirt. Most read in Sport WORLD CUP 2026 FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS The Spain captain and my former team-mate when I was at City, Rodri, has had a difficult spell with injuries after he collected the Ballon d’Or. But what Rodri showed against France is what I saw daily when he was injury free. His stats speak for themselves when he’s playing for City. Nine times out of ten they don’t lose because of how he controls and dictates a game. He plays at his pace, very similar to Sergio Busquets in how he conducts himself around the pitch. He’s a big boy — maybe 90-plus kilograms — and when you’ve got that weight behind the ball you’re probably going to come out with it. Is he the most dynamic midfielder? Definitely not. But his intelligence puts him a step ahead and how he reads it makes up for that lack of pace. He’s a quiet bloke but when he has an opinion he makes sure that he’s heard. He is very much a team player and if he feels that something’s right for the team, he’s more than willing to express it. Rodri has not had the greatest of times at City since that Ballon d’Or win.He would be the first one to hold his hand up about that because he’s a very honest guy. But he’s also a world-class player. When he was out of action it was a nightmare for him. He was playing so well, suffered what was a serious injury, and then I don’t think the rehab went as planned. So he was out longer than expected and we missed him massively. Hopefully now he’s past that and we’re getting the old Rodri that we used to see week in, week out. And he needs another performance like that one against France against a great Argentina side that is going to be wanting that second World Cup in a row. Marc Cucurella is another well-known Spanish player from the Premier League, and to say he is a bit of a nightmare to play against is an understatement. He is kind of everywhere but very diligent and does his job very well. He’s not at the World Cup to make friends or to be the most popular. He’s there to win games — and that’s what he has been doing. He’s got his move to Real Madrid, which is a great move for him, and is going about his business doing what a good full-back does and making a great contribution to his team. I have to admit I don’t really care who wins this one, though. It’s a game of football that I can probably sit back and go back to enjoying, rather than pacing up and down and being very nervous. Spain haven’t played the greatest of football in this tournament and Messi and Argentina have probably walked a bit of a tightrope, going 2-0 down to Egypt and coming back to win. This will be 100 minutes of ­putting your heart on the line and playing for your country. So ­whoever wins, congratulations. England will have a tinge of regret, though. When you come so close to reaching the final, there’s bound to be regret and a little bitterness. I wanted to be talking about England and encouraging them to finally get over the line. But it’s gone. Football is cruel, it’s a harsh world and you have to pick yourself up and go again. Comment now