City lost in one of the all-time classic semi-final encounters in midweek, and their midfielder admitted it had been a tough result to stomach

Rodri has admitted Manchester City’s dramatic Champions League exit was “like a war” following their semi-final capitulation against Real Madrid.

City blew a two-goal aggregate lead in the final minutes of the second leg at Santiago Bernabeu before they were sunk in extra-time.

A 5-0 rout of Newcastle helped Pep Guardiola’s men get back to winning ways in the Premier League title race on Sunday, but speaking afterwards, Rodri admitted that the loss had been hard to stomach in Europe.

“It was like a war, a big, big battle in the brain,” Rodri told BBC Match of the Day. “You keep thinking about what happened. It’s tough. You wait eight months for the moment to arrive and then, in the last minute, it is gone.

“The defeat to Real Madrid was so, so big but football is like this. You have to switch on the focus for the Premier League because it is even more difficult.

“We did brilliant today and we have to keep going. We expect nothing from Liverpool and we have to keep going. We have three finals and have to finish the season like we deserve.”