Rodri has insisted that Man City’s superior “mentality” was the key factor in their Premier League title triumph over Arsenal.
The Spanish midfielder criticized Mikel Arteta’s team for their perceived lack of ambition during their crucial encounter at the Etihad Stadium.
Man City secured their fourth successive title on Sunday, finishing two points ahead of Arsenal after Rodri’s decisive performance against West Ham.
Reflecting on the intense title race, Rodri highlighted how Man City’s mindset made the difference, particularly following a goalless draw in March against Arsenal that proved pivotal.
“To be honest, I think it’s in here,” Rodri told Optus Sport while pointing to his head. “It’s the mentality.
“Arsenal, also they deserve [to win the league], they did an unbelievable season, but I think the difference was in here [pointing to his head again].
“When they came here, they faced us at the Etihad, I saw them and said: ‘Ah, these guys, they don’t want to beat us, they just want a draw.’
“And 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.”
Despite falling just short, Arteta remains confident that his side will bounce back and challenge for the title again next season.
“Today some mixed emotions. First of all, to be really proud of the staff and those players. They’ve done an incredible job and they have pushed every limit and every margin that we could to try to win this Premier League.
“Unfortunately, it a bit short and we couldn’t deliver the prize that we wanted.
“They (City) took it away from us. It’s the second season.
“If we do what we have to do, we’re going to be closer and at the end we’ll win it. When? I don’t know, but if we keep knocking and being that close, in the end it will happen.”
