Barcelona star Rodri defends Man City over 115 Premier League financial charges

Rodri has thrown his support behind his old club amid their ongoing legal battle with the Premier League. Recent reports suggest the English club are expected to be found guilty on the vast majority of their 115 financial charges.

Despite these claims, the Spain international maintains complete faith in the Etihad Stadium hierarchy. City have not officially denied the latest reports, while the Premier League has refused to comment on the confidential process. Rodri spent seven highly successful years in Manchester before joining Barcelona this summer. The charges relate to a period before the 2024 Ballon d'Or winner arrived in England in 2019.

Rodri faced the media on Friday and firmly backed the City bosses. He revealed that club executives had always been completely transparent with the playing squad regarding the ongoing allegations.

"They always told us the confidence they had in their innocence, and when you look in someone's eyes and they tell you that," Rodri explained, as quoted by ESPN. "We were always calm, we never saw the team being nervous with these kinds of things."

The midfielder also recalled a similar situation in 2020, when UEFA initially banned City from European competition before an appeal overturned the verdict.

"I believe in the innocence of the club," he added. "I know the club well. We were told at the time to be calm, and that everything had been done properly."

The recent reports have cast a shadow over City's unprecedented era of dominance. However, Rodri insists that any off-field controversy cannot erase the immense effort put in by Pep Guardiola and his players.

"When you live daily at that club, with all the people that worked hard all these years to have the success we had, with Pep [Guardiola], the owners, everyone who worked on that. They can't take that from us," Rodri stated.

"It's something that isn't paid for with money, it's effort, partnership, standing shoulder to shoulder. We had a lot of success, here at Wembley, and I can tell you that everything was deserved."

For now, the Premier League will continue its confidential legal process regarding City's financial case. A final outcome will eventually reveal what consequences, if any, the club will face. Meanwhile, Rodri must put his club loyalties aside and focus on international duty. The midfielder is set to captain Spain when they face England at Wembley in the UEFA Nations League on Saturday.