As they get ready to take on Inter Milan in the Champions League final, Rodri claims that Manchester City has learned from its previous disappointments in Europe.
City lost to Chelsea to win the trophy in 2021 after a 1-0 loss in Porto, and a year ago they blew a late lead to lose to Real Madrid in the semifinals.
The only major trophy the club is still missing is the European Cup, although they are heavy favourites to win an unprecedented treble going into their match against the Serie A team in Istanbul on next Saturday.
Ilkay Gundogan scored a goal in each half to secure the win and add the FA Cup to the Premier League title they won in May, completing the feat with a 2-1 victory against Manchester United in the FA Cup final on Saturday at Wembley.
Since the squad has been unable to win Europe’s top award, Rodri cited this month’s thrilling victory over Real in the semifinals as proof that they are capable of making up for prior seasons’ mistakes.
We try to learn a lot from the past, as I’ve said before, he continued.
We’re going to play the same way, trying to solve the problem, recover from the problem, and try to win the final, like we did, for example, when we faced Real Madrid before losing there last year.
City was at its brilliant best in the 4-0 triumph at the Etihad against the defending European champions that propelled them to Istanbul. Bernardo Silva scored twice along with goals from Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez to clinch a 5-1 aggregate victory.
This was in sharp contrast to how the club felt after being eliminated by the same opponent at the same stage the year before, when they let a two-goal aggregate lead slip at the Bernabeu before falling short in overtime.
“I think that the experience is a very good point,” Rodri stated. Additionally, the new players have a significant impact and provide us more each year. I believe that the squad as a whole learns together. Every time, we make an effort to be innovative and diligent.
If you lose in Europe, Pep allegedly said, “You won’t be ‘big, big’. It’s the test we need to pass once more. I can only say that we have one more final before we are prepared. I’ll just encourage the guys to be themselves. Be confident, stay true to who you are, give it your all, and compete to the end.
“Our group consists of 23 players, and each of them has played a significant role at some point this season. The 23 players were a member of the winning team in the Premier League from the beginning to the end and in the Champions League to advance to the championship game. The group is crucial.
The Premier League has accused the team of breaking 115 alleged financial regulations between 2009 and 2018. If the accusations are found to be true, City could lose points or even be kicked out of the Premier League, according to the decision of an independent committee.