Mikel Arteta has delivered his verdict after Rodri produced a horror-looking tackle on Martin Odegaard during Spain's win over Norway last Saturday.
The Manchester City midfielder flew into a challenge and ended up catching Odegaard on the shin, leaving Arsenal fans furious. The Arsenal captain shifted the ball onto his left foot and attempted to shoot before being caught by Rodri.
Odegaard rolled around in pain but managed to get up and complete the rest of the game. It didn't seem like the tackle caused any long-lasting damage to Odegaard, either, ahead of the Premier League season run-in.
Spain ran out 3-0 winners on the night against an Erling Haaland-less Norway side and Odegaard also featured in Norway's 1-1 draw at Georgia on Tuesday, meaning they failed to win any of their first two Euro 2024 qualifiers.
When asked about Rodri's tackle ahead of Arsenal's game against Leeds, Arteta said: "These things happen in football when they play against each-other. But the rest of them are all good."
Arsenal currently sit eight points clear of Rodri's City at the top of the Premier League, while Odegaard has been one of the Gunners' best players this season.
Rodri has already won the title twice with Pep Guardiola's men but City will be keen to become the first team since Manchester United to win the division three times in a row. The Red Devils did that twice under Sir Alex Ferguson, with the most recent occasion coming between 2008 and 2011.
The tackle on Odegaard wasn't the only bit of controversy Rodri was involved in over the international break. The 26-year-old decided to slam Scotland's tactics after Spain lost 2-0 at Hampden Park on Tuesday.
"It’s the way they play - for me it's a bit rubbish. It's always wasting time, they provoke you, they always fall. For me, this is not football," the City ace told Viaplay ..
"The referee has to take a part in this but he said nothing. It’s a bit frustrating because we want to win and it’s difficult because they waste time, waste time. It is what it is. They have their weapons, we have our weapons, and we will learn for next time."
Andy Robertson took little time to hit back at Rodri for his comments, however, and defended Scotland's style. A Scott McTominay brace helped the Tartan Army beat Spain on the night.
"Yeah look, I think they were going down a little bit easily, we were trying to say that," Robertson told Viaplay Sports . "We were always going to try to be physical, we wanted to be in their faces, win our headers and challenges and I think we did that.
"I don’t think we crossed the line. They were, especially in the first half, rolling about a wee bit much but they use their experience and they got a couple of us booked which is fair enough to them."
