Spanish midfielder Rodri revealed in an interview that his favorite food is sushi, a choice that breaks the strict dietary routine of athletes.
Rodri has arrived in Barcelona to complete his transfer to the club. Barcelona previously reached an agreement with Manchester City to bring the world-class player to the Camp Nou. The 30-year-old Madridista won the World Cup with Spain, was named the tournament's best player, and is also set to win the Ballon d'Or in 2024.
His arrival has drawn attention to all aspects of his career, including the personal life of this usually low-key player. In an interview with GQ Spain last year, Rodri revealed his favorite foods while still playing for Manchester City and fresh off winning the Ballon d'Or. In that interview, he discussed essential items, hobbies, and small joys in daily life, including food.
“Sushi is my favorite,” Rodri said in a social media video posted by the magazine. But this wasn’t always the case. He revealed that he was hardly interested in this type of food as a child and didn’t like it when he first tried it.
As he grew older, his perspective changed. "As I grew up, I realized that high-quality sushi is really amazing," he explained, adding that although he doesn't eat it often, he enjoys it when he feels like "treating himself."
Of the many types of Japanese cuisine, Rodri's favorite is "makis" (sushi rolls), a traditional cylindrical sushi made by wrapping rice and other ingredients in seaweed.
When discussing diet, Rodri said he's not particularly picky about food, but he understands the importance of a balanced diet for maintaining peak performance. "I'm not too particular about food; I'm pretty casual and try to eat a variety of things." He admitted that "at our level, we can't relax our standards for our diet."
However, his philosophy goes far beyond strictly restricting one's diet. In his view, the key is to maintain diversity, rather than meticulously calculating every meal.
The interview also revealed an interesting detail: the new Barcelona signing admitted that he has never quite understood wasabi, this spicy green sauce. Therefore, he uses it very sparingly, confessing that he once made "a mistake everyone makes—putting in too much," resulting in the sauce being almost inedible.
His solution was simple: add only "a tiny bit," not for the flavor, but because wasabi helps "disinfect" the raw fish. In fact, besides enhancing the flavor, wasabi is also used as a natural antibacterial agent to prevent microorganisms in raw fish.
Now that Rodri is about to begin his Barcelona career, fans have also learned about one of his little hobbies off the field.
