Rodri Apologizes to Valencia Squad After Controversial Comments
Rodri has moved to defuse a brewing storm in Spain by apologising to the entire Valencia squad after television cameras appeared to catch him branding the La Liga side “very weak”.
The Barcelona midfielder was filmed on the bench at Mestalla on Sunday, speaking with team-mates Pau Cubarsi and Raphinha after being substituted in Barça’s 5-0 win over Valencia. With the hosts pinned back and already well beaten, Movistar lip-read the 30-year-old as saying: “They’re really weak. They haven’t got past the halfway line.”
There was no audio, but the clip spread quickly. Valencia, rooted to the bottom of the table with no wins from their first four league games, suddenly had another problem: the perception that one of Spain’s biggest stars was ridiculing them.
Reaction came fast. Supporters and sections of the Spanish media accused Rodri – the golden ball winner as Spain lifted the 2026 World Cup – of disrespecting a historic club in a vulnerable moment.
Three days later, after Barcelona’s 5-1 Champions League victory over Feyenoord on Wednesday, Rodri fronted up.
“I apologised to my friend and colleague Jose Gaya and to the entire squad as well,” he said, referencing the Spain defender and Valencia captain.
He insisted the comments, as he framed them, were not meant as a taunt but as a reaction to the flow of the game.
“I also want to make it clear that it was simply an expression of surprise – anyone watching the video can see that,” Rodri said. “At no point did I intend to mock anyone or take a difficult moment for a team out of context.”
He then went out of his way to praise the club whose fans felt slighted.
“Quite the opposite – we all want Valencia to return to where it belongs in the league, it is one of the best clubs in the competition. I simply wanted to say that.”
The midfielder also pushed back at how the incident had spiralled from a brief exchange on the bench into a national talking point.
“I would also add that it was a private conversation; I think we should all learn a bit more from this, as things really do get taken out of context sometimes. But at no point did I mean any disrespect. My apologies to Valencia.”
A heavy defeat, a viral clip, and an international star forced into an apology – Valencia’s start to the season has been bruising on and off the pitch. The question now is whether they can answer all of it where it matters most: on the league table.
