When it comes to strong football mentality, there can be no greater example in the game than Manchester City’s Rodri.
Rodri always seems to come up clutch in the big moments when the stakes are high, scoring the deciding goal in their Champions League final against Inter Milan last season and scoring their third goal on Sunday against West Ham to help the team clinch their fourth successive Premier League title.
But to actually get an idea of how important he is to the team, City haven’t lost a match when Rodri has been in the team since February 2023. When he plays, they win.
During the trophy celebrations on Sunday, Rodri was asked about what it takes for Pep Guardiola’s men’s to be successful and make history almost every season. And the midfielder, whose shirt is always tucked in while playing, had pop at title rivals Arsenal when answering the question.
“To be honest, it's in here [pointing to his head]. It's the mentality,” said Rodri.
'These guys, they don't want to beat us. They just want to draw' 🗣️
— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) May 19, 2024
Rodri knew Manchester City's title was never in doubt when Arsenal went to the Etihad.
He tells @schwarzer_mark about the monster mentality.
Free to watch highlights 📲 https://t.co/GeqQOl0w2L pic.twitter.com/bRL6LvZet3
“Great players are all over the league, all over the clubs.
“Arsenal also they deserve, they did an unbelievable season, but I think the difference was in here [points to his head].
“When they came here, they faced us at the Etihad, I saw them ... ‘Ah, these guys, they don't want to beat us, they just want a draw’.
“That mentality ... I don't think we would do it the same way.
“And we caught them. At the end, if you give us one point, we will win the last seven, eight games even though it's so tough. So I think it comes down to mentality.”
@JohnGoliath82