Rodri charged by FA following post-Tottenham interview comments | OneFootball

Manchester City midfielder Rodri has been charged by the Football Association following comments he made after the 2-2 draw with Tottenham earlier this month.

Pep Guardiola’s side were left immensely frustrated in North London at the start of February, having led Thomas Frank’s squad by a 0-2 scoreline at the half-time interval, only to leave with a singular point.

Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo had given Manchester City a strong advantage heading into the break, only for two goals from Dominic Solanke to tie the game and see the visitors throw away further points in their chase for the Premier League crown.

However, the manner of the draw left City with a huge feeling of frustration, after Solanke’s first goal saw the striker clearly strike the back of Marc Guehi’s leg, forcing the ball beyond Gianluigi Donnarumma off the England international.

A panel later adjudged the goal to have gone in directly off Solanke, however Pep Guardiola and his players firmly felt as though their January defensive recruit was fouled in the process for the goal.

Rodri told Premier League broadcasters after the contest, “I never speak about referees, I respect their job massively… But it’s two, three games in a row, I don’t know why. I know we won too much, people don’t want us to win, but the referee has to be neutral. And it’s not fair.”

The Spaniard continued, “We expect [against Tottenham] to win, but we go further from this. We’re not going to put arms down, we’re going to keep fighting until the end because this is our identity. But the reality is we need to be fair.

“It’s not just one [incident]; everyone can make a mistake, we all have mistakes, no worries about one. But when it’s one, two, three, four [games] in a row, it’s not possible! I’m not saying the level of referees here is bad, it’s great!

“But we have to pay attention; we work so hard for little actions now make the difference. It CANNOT make the difference. Today, unfortunately it did. No [I’ve not spoken to referee Rob Jones], it’s impossible. You cannot talk to them. It’s not my aim. In years before, it’s not my responsibility, now I’m the captain, I want to say today, we feel a bit upset with this.”

Now, a statement issued by the Football Association on Friday afternoon says, “Manchester City’s Rodri has been charged with misconduct in relation to comments that he made after their Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 1 February 2026.”

The statement continues, “It’s alleged that the midfielder acted in an improper manner during a post-match media interview by making comments that imply bias and/or question the integrity of a match official and/or match officials, contrary to FA Rule 3.1.

“Rodri has until Wednesday 18 February to provide a response.”

At this stage, it remains unknown as to what response Rodri will give to the matter, however possible sanctions if found in breach of FA Rule 3.1 can range from fines and warnings, to suspensions depending on the deemed severity of the case.

Pep Guardiola’s side remain in the midst of a significant run of matches across all competitions, and will certainly require Rodri to maintain the club’s standards as they compete for multiple major honours.

Following significant victories over Liverpool and Fulham, City now take on Salford in the FA Cup fourth round, before hosting Newcastle United in the Premier League and visiting Leeds United’s Elland Road the following weekend.