Rodri has joined the chorus of dissatisfaction at Manchester City towards referees, saying they must remain impartial in the face of what he perceives to be general ill-feeling towards his club.
The midfielder was stunned when Tottenham’s goal for 2-1 against City on Sunday was allowed to stand. It was scored by Dominic Solanke, who appeared to kick through the leg of the City defender Marc Guéhi, sending the ball partly off him and into the net. Solanke later scored a sensational volley to earn Spurs a 2-2 draw and leave City six points behind the Premier League leaders, Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola made plain that he felt Solanke had fouled Guéhi and his complaints came on the back of a number of recent decisions that have gone against his team. The manager was unhappy an Antoine Semenyo goal was ruled out at Newcastle in the Carabao Cup; Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot avoided a red card in the derby for a studs-up foul on Jérémy Doku; and City were denied a penalty against Wolves for handball.
Rodri said: “I know we won too much and the people don’t want us to win, but the referee has to be neutral. It’s not fair because we work so hard. When everything is finished, you are frustrated.”
He had earlier said: “It’s the first goal they score, maybe [if] they don’t score this goal we win the game. It’s one game and another game and another game – and it’s not possible. Honestly, I never speak about referees, I respect their job massively. But they have to pay attention to these things. He kicked the leg, it’s so clear … It’s two, three games in a row and I don’t know why.”
