Rodri: 'The football is more direct and makes you learn'

Cape Town - Manchester City midfielder Rodri feels his move to the Premier League champions in the off-season has helped him develop and improve his game.

City broke their club transfer record to bring him in from Atletico Madrid this summer for a fee in the region of £62 million.

So far, he has performed fairly well, effectively replacing Fernandinho in midfield, with the Brazilian being used at centre-back to try and temporarily ease their injury crisis.

Rodri has made 13 appearances in all competitions, scoring one goal in their shock 3-2 loss to Norwich in mid-September.

It has not been the ideal introduction to life in the Premier League for the 23-year-old, with City now nine points adrift of title rivals Liverpool following their 3-1 defeat at Anfield on Sunday.

That has come on the back of City winning two Premier League titles and generally dominating the English football landscape under Pep Guardiola.

However, Rodri, who is set to win his eighth cap for Spain when they play Malta on Friday in a Euro 2020 qualifier, says joining City has been a very good move for him personally, and has helped him become a better player.

"When you decide to make a change it's for individual growth, and it's been good for me," he said about his transfer.

"It's a competitive league, football is more direct and makes you learn. I am a more complete player and I can contribute something more to the national team."

The former Villarreal man has been a regular fixture for Spain in their Euro 2020 qualifying campaign, starting four of their eight matches.

Spain have already qualified for next summer's showpiece event as they aim to end their campaign in style against Malta and Romania.

City will be looking to get their season back on track after the international break but face a tough-looking fixture against Chelsea on November 23.

They then play their fifth Champions League group match at home to Shakhtar Donetsk before rounding off November with a trip to face Newcastle at St James' Park.

- TeamTalk Media