In the 20th round of the Premier League, Man City confidently welcomed Chelsea. Right before the match, The Blues parted ways with head coach Enzo Maresca. Tijjani Reijnders' opening goal in the first half seemed enough for Man City to decide the match, but Enzo Fernandez's shot in injury time unexpectedly brought a valuable point for Chelsea.
This result caused Man City to continue to drop points, after the draw against Sunderland, and are currently 6 points behind Arsenal. However, midfielder Rodri remained calm when talking about the situation of the season.
Very frustrating, but this is football," Rodri shared after the match. "We created enough chances to win 3 or 4-0. If you can't take advantage of it, the opponent only needs a moment to punish you.
The Spanish midfielder emphasized that Man City lost control in the second half. He explained: "The first half we played very well. In the second half, we forgot how to play, lost the ball too easily and let them control the game. The road ahead is still long and we need to learn more from this.
Rodri also admitted that force issues are affecting Man City. "Each injury disbalances the team. That's not an excuse, but clearly we need to adjust better.
Man City entered the match against Chelsea in a situation where their force was seriously eroded. John Stones continued to be absent due to a long-term injury, Mateo Kovacic had not yet returned, and Rodri had just reappeared after a long break so he was not in his best form. At the Etihad Stadium, the problem became even clearer when both Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol were also injured and left the field in the middle of the match.
Rodri himself has also just returned from injury. For him, being on the field at this time is already special: "For me, playing football is a gift. What I have experienced is terrible. Winning, drawing or losing at this time is a gift.
In the next round, Arsenal will face Liverpool, and Man City must beat Brighton if they do not want to be left further behind in the championship race.
