Rodriguez voted Switzerland's best
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
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VfL Wolfsburg's Ricardo Rodriguez has been voted Swiss Player of the Year for the first time, the left-back beating Xherdan Shaqiri and Diego Benaglio to the annual award.
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VfL Wolfsburg left-back Ricardo Rodriguez has been voted Swiss Player of the Year after helping his country to the round of 16 in this summer's FIFA World Cup finals.
The 22-year-old played every minute of Switzerland's campaign in Brazil, which ended in an extra-time defeat by Argentina, and was selected ahead of fellow nominees Xherdan Shaqiri and club-mate Diego Benaglio in the poll. "I am only part of the team. I am nothing on my own, but I can do my bit in order for us to be successful together," said FC Zürich old boy Rodriguez as he paid tribute to his national team-mates on collection of the award.
Udinese Calcio's Silvan Widmer was named rookie of the year while Ottmar Hitzfeld, who stepped down as national coach after the World Cup, was honoured as coach of the year. The two-time UEFA Champions League winner retired from the game following Switzerland's World Cup exit, having led the side 61 times. For the fourth year running, and the fifth time in her career, Olympique Lyonnais midfielder Lara Dickenmann was female player of the year.
