Rodri sends message to Arsenal after Man City's draw with Chelsea

Manchester City midfielder Rodri (Picture: Getty) Rodri insisted there was ‘still a long way to go’ in the title race and said Manchester City would ‘keep going and going’ after a frustrating draw with Chelsea. Enzo Fernandez’s injury-time equaliser earned Chelsea a 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium in their first game since Enzo Maresca left his role as manager. Tijjani Reijnders’ first-half opener looked set to separate the sides but Chelsea, coached by caretaker manager Calum McFarlan, scored late on to dent Man City’s title hopes. Manchester City also dropped points against Sunderland before the visit of Chelsea and now find themselves six points behind title favourites Arsenal. ‘It’s frustrating of course but at the end of the day it is what it is,’ said Rodri. ‘We created enough chances to win the game three or four nil, but this is football. ‘If you don’t take your chances with nothing they just draw the game. So we have to learn from this. There is still a long way and we just need to focus on the next games. ‘First half was brilliant, enough to score three or four goals. In the second half we forgot a little bit how to play and they got control of the game, losing easy balls. Enzo Fernandez scored an injury-time equaliser (Picture: Getty) ‘Sometimes when you defend, defend, defend, they did not have much but they get a draw. There’s still a long way to go. ‘It unbalances the team every single time a player goes out [injured] but of course the team has to adjust. It is not an excuse, we have enough talented players to play but in the second half we lose face a bit. ‘We move on, we have the next game against Brighton at home and we have to win. We know that this season is going to be long so we have to keep going and going.’ "I don't think this game is league-defining"Micah Richards on Man City losing ground to Arsenal in the title race 🏆 pic.twitter.com/CWitEejUhP— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 4, 2026 On his return to football after a long injury absence, Rodri added: ‘For me it is a gift. ‘What I have been through has been terrible for me so winning, drawing, losing for me right now everything is a gift. ‘To play, have the joy of the game and recover the smile, and the rest will come, the victories, the successes for the team. Right now it’s about staying fit and enjoying football. ‘I went through the process of where you have to adjust the body in terms of the muscle. I feel strong. I need the rhythm of the games but for the moment of the season we are in and where I came from I feel good.’ Former Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given believes the last week could prove to be ‘huge’ in the title race, with Guardiola’s side dropping points to Sunderland and Chelsea. ‘It’s a brilliant result for Chelsea, with no manager,’ he said on BBC Radio 5 Live. ‘And a brilliant result and week for Arsenal, who are now six points clear. ‘Man City dropping four points in the last two games is huge at this time of the season. ‘We always say Christmas and New Year, with such a busy schedule, is so important and it’s not been a great festive period for Manchester City. ‘Both their centre halves went off and Rodri looked leggy in the last 15, 20 minutes. ‘Their squad’s quite stretched at the minute, which people might laugh at because of the money they’ve spent, but if you look at the bench today there were a lot of kids given the injuries and absentees they have. ‘On the whole it was probably a fair result and you’ve got to give credit to Chelsea’s second half performance as they were so much better than they were in the first.’ More to follow… For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.