Mallorca suspends club captain Rodriguez for criticism of coach Arrastate

Madrid, Sep 3 La Liga club Real Mallorca on Wednesday announced it had suspended club captain, Dani Rodriguez, for criticizing coach Jagoba Arrasate following his side's 2-1 defeat away to Real Madrid on Saturday night. The club has also stripped Rodriguez of the captaincy.

Rodriguez didn't play a single minute in the game and afterward posted a message on 'Instagram' criticizing the first team coach. "Never expect anything from anyone and even less so today, when meritocracy, culture, and respect for work are conspicuous by their absence."

"Don't do anything expecting something in exchange...You earn respect and affection on the pitch, and you have to earn them, not have them gifted to you," fumed Rodriguez.

The player explained his words the following day, reports Xinhua.

He said he was frustrated that new signing Jan Virgili had played. "It hurt me that a player who had just arrived played, despite having had just one training session."

His explanation has not been accepted by the club, which on Wednesday issued a statement saying "RCD Mallorca informs that it has suspended the player Dani Rodriguez from both employment and salary. The club has also relieved him of the captaincy with immediate effect."

The 37-year-old Daniel Jose Rodríguez Vazquez, who plays as a central midfielder, has been with Mallorca since 2018 and has represented the club in 259 matches, scoring 28 goals.

He had started his professional career at Deportivo La Coruna, starting with the 'B' team initially, and was with the club from 2007 to 2011, with a loan stint at Betanzos thrown in between. He has also represented Conquense, Racing Ferrol, Racing Santander, and Albacete before landing at Mallorca in 2018.

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