Rodri wasn’t too happy when his Spain side lost to Scotland earlier this week and John McGinn has now responded to his tirade after the game.
For the first time since 1984, Spain lost to Scotland at Hampden Park in a huge upset in their 2024 European Qualification campaign.
Manchester City’s Rodri lambasted the Scottish team after the game for their ‘rubbish’ playing style in a no holds barred interview.
“It’s the way they play – for me it’s a bit rubbish. It’s always wasting time, they provoke you, they always fall. For me, this is not football.” He told Viaplay after the game.
“The referee has to take a part in this but he said nothing. It’s a bit frustrating because we want to win and it’s difficult because they waste time, waste time. It is what it is.
“They have their weapons, we have our weapons, and we will learn for next time.”
In a recent interview, Scottish midfielder McGinn was asked about the comments and decided to double down.
🗣️ “Wasting time? Absolutely! If anyone expects us to go head-to-head with Spain in a tiki-taka battle for 90 minutes and come away with three points? No chance.” 🤣
John McGinn responds to Rodri’s comments about Scotland’s style of play pic.twitter.com/syIKsW1XXY
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) March 30, 2023
“Wasting time? Absolutely,” The Aston Villa midfielder said.
“If anyone expects us to go head-to-head with Spain in a Tiki-taka battle for 90 minutes and expects us to come away with three points, then there is absolutely no chance.
“I think everyone needs to get a bit of realism and realise that we need to find a way to beat Spain. We managed to do it. The grass is a bit long, the pitch was a bit sticky. But it’s in Scotland, it’s not in Spain. It’s the benefits of being the home team.
“I thought we handled the game well, and maturely. Did we waste time a bit? Aye, absolutely because we were winning from an early point.
“Were we rolling about from challenges? Naw, we were the same as the Spain players. I don’t really agree with that, but Spain are a top, top team and I’m sure they will be back.”