Rodri accused match officials of treating Manchester City unfairly after a 2-2 Premier League draw with Tottenham, insisting Dominic Solanke’s first goal should not have stood. The midfielder argued that
a foul on Marc Guehi was obvious, and questioned whether referees are showing the required neutrality towards Manchester City this season.
City appeared on course for a routine victory at half-time. Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo both scored before the break, giving Manchester City a 2-0 advantage that would have trimmed the gap to league leaders Arsenal to four points if they had held on.
The second half changed the game completely as Tottenham responded through Solanke. The striker pulled one goal back, then later equalised with a scorpion kick that beat the goalkeeper. That comeback meant City failed to win after leading by two or more goals at half-time for the first time since losing 3-2 to Manchester United in April 2018.
Before facing Spurs, Manchester City had won 115 consecutive matches in all competitions when at least two goals ahead at the interval. That streak ended with this collapse, leaving Pep Guardiola’s team six points behind Arsenal in the title race and raising fresh questions about key decisions going against them.
The biggest flashpoint came with Solanke’s first goal. The forward appeared to kick through Guehi’s heel, which then knocked the ball into the net off the defender’s boot. Guardiola and the players believed the contact was a foul, yet the VAR review allowed the goal to stand, judging that Solanke had legitimately played the ball.
Rodri expressed the squad’s anger at the ruling and wider concerns about recent calls. "I know we won too much and people don't want us to win, but the referee has to be neutral and for me, honestly, it's not fair," Rodri told Australian broadcaster Stan Sport. "It's not fair because we work so hard in these situations and now to make these decisions. we have to move on. "
The Premier League Match Centre later clarified the reasoning. Officials stated that the on-field decision of goal had been checked, and VAR agreed that the challenge on Guehi was legal because Solanke played the ball. The goal was officially credited to Solanke after review by the goal accreditation panel.
#TOTMCI53 The referees call of goal was checked and confirmed by VARwith the challenge by Solanke on Guhi deemed not to be a foul as Solanke played the ball. The goal accreditation panel has adjudged the goal to be a Solanke goal.Premier League Match Centre (@PLMatchCentre) February 1, 2026
Rodri linked the incident to a wider pattern from January, when Manchester City felt several important calls went against them. The club were frustrated by penalty appeals rejected against Newcastle United and Wolves, while Erling Haaland believed a late penalty could have been awarded against Spurs as well.
The midfielder said the players were left deflated by the decision on Solanke’s goal. "Of course, we needed to come back, but at the end, when everything is finished, we are frustrated because it's so clear, the foul. He kicked the leg and, of course, with the push of the action on the ball, the ball goes in. We have to pay attention to these little things, otherwise it's going to be difficult for everyone because this league is like thisit's about small details and everything counts. I think today was a very tough day for us in this sense. "
Manchester City now turn attention to the EFL Cup, where the team host Newcastle on Wednesday in the semi-final second leg. Guardiola’s side lead 2-0 from the first meeting away from home and will try to use that position to regain momentum after a damaging league setback.
