Rodri reveals frank Man City dressing room chat that transformed Arsenal chase

Manchester City midfielder Rodri said the team had an open conversation after drawing with Nottingham Forest which sparked a ruthless winning run.

Having beaten Arsenal at the Emirates in midweek, Pep Guardiola’s side travelled to the City Ground for what was seen as a formality.

But after the Gunners had won at Aston Villa earlier in the day, City gave away two points as Chris Wood scored a late equaliser with Nottingham Forest ’s only shot on target. City had laid siege to Forest but only had Bernardo Silva’s goal to show for it.

Rodri has given details of a dressing room discussion after the disappointing draw at struggling Forest in February.

The talk led to Pep Guardiola’s side going on a relentless streak of 10 wins out of 12 matches including six successive Premier League wins.

“I remember the game in Nottingham. We had a conversation. It’s not enough to play good, you need to punish,” Rodri said after City’s 1-1 draw at Bayern Munich, which saw them qualify for the Champions League semi-finals.

“From that moment we switched on and you see it now, the behaviour and the character of the team. We identified the fact that we needed to punish our rivals. That is where we have improved … to finish the games. You have seen it in the last months that almost every chance we have, we score.”

City have gained four points on Arsenal since the draw at Forest and the title is now in their own hands heading into next Wednesday’s showdown against the Gunners at the Etihad Stadium. They are also on track to complete a treble after reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League and FA Cup.

Rodri added: “That is what we work for. Now we know that if we want to achieve everything then every game is a final and we have to win – that is the mentality.”