Man City star Rodri learns serious punishment amid Premier League title race

Rodri made the comments after a draw with Spurs

Rodri reportedly admitted the charge of "acting in an improper manner" and an independent commission decided that he should be fined £80,000 for the offence.

The punishment has been confirmed in a statement by the Football Association.

The statement reads: "An independent Regulatory Commission has sanctioned Rodri for the media comments that he made after Manchester City’s Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 1 February.

"It was alleged that the midfielder acted in an improper manner during a post-match media interview by making comments that imply bias and/or question the integrity of a match official and/or match officials, contrary to FA Rule E3.1.

"Rodri subsequently admitted the charge against him. The Regulatory Commission imposed an £80,000 fine and warning as to future conduct following a hearing."

The situation came about after Rodri gave an interview with Australian broadcaster Stan Sports, in which he claimed: "I know we won too much and the people don’t want us to win but the referee has to be neutral and for me honestly, it’s not fair.

"It’s not fair because we work so hard in these situations and now to make these decisions, we have to move on.

"Of course you need to come back but at the end, when everything is finished, we are frustrated because it’s so clear, the foul."