SPANISH SIDE Mallorca have suspended veteran Dani Rodriguez without pay and stripped him of his captaincy following a social media outburst.
The midfielder had publicly complained that he did not get to play in the team’s match against Real Madrid, when his family was in attendance.
Mallorca issued a statement on Wednesday confirming the player had been suspended from duty and pay, and that the club has stripped him of his captaincy with immediate effect.
Rodriguez was an unused substitute in Mallorca’s 2-1 loss to Madrid on Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
After the match, the 37-year-old veteran posted a photo of his family at the stadium on Instagram, accompanied by a text in which he complained about not getting any minutes
He said he had travelled to Madrid with his kids who were excited about the opportunity to see his dad play at the Bernabeu.
They were left disappointed when their father failed to play a minute in the game.
The Spaniard posted:”An important lesson and piece of advice for them: Never expect anything from anyone, especially these days, when meritocracy, culture, and respect for hard work are lacking.
“Don’t do things expecting something in return. Do it for yourself and your passion.”
He later followed that post with an open letter published by Spanish media.
He said he respected the decisions made by manager Jagoba Arrasate, and that he wasn’t upset because his kids did not get to watch him play or about his personal game time.
“What I cant accept is the lack of respect for commitment and dedication, he said.
“It hurts when a player who just arrived, with just one training session, has the opportunity to play ahead of team-mates who have spent years defending this jersey with sweat and dedication, always putting the club above all else.”
He was apparently referring to recently signed forward Jan Virgili, who was substituted on by Arrasate in the 87th minute.
Rodriguez said: “I hope Jan succeeds here and that together we can all help him.
“But when something like this happens, it sends a terrible message to the locker room: work, dedication or loyalty don’t matter. That’s what angered me.”
Rodriguez said he wrote the letter to clear things up because his family was going through a tough time.
He has not made any public statements since Mallorca announced the suspension.
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