City's 1-1 draw with West Ham on Saturday (14.03.26) leaves them nine points behind the Gunners - albeit with a game in hand - and the midfielder insists that the team won't give up despite the odds being firmly against them.

Rodri told reporters: "Maybe [the title race is over] yes, maybe no. We're not going to drop hands, we're going to keep fighting.

"We know it's going to be difficult because we have this experience of what you need to win at the end. I think the distance is too far but we're going to fight until the end. Now is a moment of no regrets."

The Spanish international was frustrated by City's lack of killer instinct in front of goal as they were unable to overcome a resilient West Ham side.

He said: "We showed a little bit of what the season was, ups and downs, then maybe the last pass or the last strike can make the difference. Football is about goals and we couldn't find the players to have numbers in terms of goals. That's the most important thing in football because we created the chances, we controlled the games but this is what makes the difference."

City will now bid to overturn a 3-0 aggregate deficit when they take on Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie on Tuesday (17.03.26) and Rodri is confident that the team can pull off a comeback for the ages.

He said: "We are alive in other competitions and on Tuesday we have a massive game [against Real Madrid], that I really believe we can turn around. The players who play have to score."