Rodri prevented a Liverpool counterattack but was only reminded by the referee.
In 34 minutes, Cody Gakpo dribbles a speedball to eliminate Manuel Akanji. When he saw his teammates overtaken, Rodri had no choice but to pull the striker down on the Liverpool side.
After the moment Gakpo fell to the field, the Liverpool player ran to pressurize, asking the referee to give Rodri a second yellow card. The visitors think that the Spaniard has prevented a counter-attack that is likely to lead to a situation facing the goalkeeper, even a goal.
Just a minute ago, the former Atletico Madrid player was shown a yellow card for pulling down Diogo Jota. However, Mr. Hooper only showed Rodri a yellow card. The decision created controversy on social media.
“Rodri should be fired in this situation,” commented Sam McGuire, an expert at Opta. “Rodri can do this 3 more times on the pitch without worrying about being sent off,” account Declan Carr mocked the referee. “The referee’s decision is shameful,” said an Albino fan.
The first half of the match at Etihad Stadium took place with high professional quality. The two top Premier League clubs gave fans a fiery attack for 45 minutes.
Liverpool took the lead after a counter-attack, which ended with a finish from Mohamed Salah in the 17th minute. 10 minutes later, the Premier League champions equalized with a high-level bounce from the center to the left wing. Julian Alvarez’s job is just to cushion the ball from close range, knocking Alisson Becker down.
When the second half lasted 8 minutes, Man City took a 3-1 lead thanks to goals from De Bruyne and Gundogan.
Guardiola celebrates cгаzy-provoking Liverpool star
In the 17th minute, Mohamed Salah opened the scoring for Liverpool with a neat fix in the penalty area. However, just 10 minutes later, Man City brought the match back to the starting line with a methodical attack arrangement. Jack Grealish was the one to pass in from the left to Julian Alvarez to cushion the ball into Alisson Becker’s net.
Witnessing Alvarez’s equalizer, coach Guardiola was as happy as cгаzy outside the piste. In a video that went viral on social media, Pep arched his back, punching his hands in the air with extreme joy. At that moment, Liverpool’s reserve players including Joe Matip, Kostas Tsimikas, and Arthur Melo walked over.
Immediately, Guardiola turned to Tsimikas, repeatedly saying something provocative. In response to Pep’s reaction, Tsimikas could only just bow his head and walk away. After that, the Spanish strategist reached out to shake hands with Arthur and was accepted by the player.
Witnessing Guardiola’s somewhat outrageous actions, many Liverpool fans expressed frustration. Even former player Rio Ferdinand felt uncomfortable and he gave an opinion on BT Sport: “That celebration, somehow Tsimikas didn’t push coach Pep Guardiola out of the way”.
Alvarez’s equalizer opened the way for Man City’s impressive comeback against Liverpool. Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, and Jack Grealish then scored to help Man City lead Liverpool 4-1. Almost certainly 3 points have stayed with the Green Man when Liverpool completely crumbled.