Aston Villa were infuriated after Manchester City's controversial first goal on Wednesday was allowed to stand despite an apparent offside.
Bernardo Silva broke the deadlock in the 79th minute at the Etihad but profited from Rodri, who had burst back into play despite being clearly beyond the backline, interfering and teeing up the strike.
Boss Dean Smith was dismissed from the touchline after loudly complaining against the decision - and even BT Sport's pundits were left bemused by the chaos.
Villa were able to stand firm and repel the hosts on several occasions but had finally been dealt the killer blow through Silva's superb arrowed finish.
The playmaker picked up the ball on the edge of the penalty area before driving forward and smashing beyond the impressive Emiliano Martinez.
It was the interference from Rodri, however, which saw tempers spill over inside the Villa technical area.
Rodri was able to dispossess a hesitant Tyrone Mings and laid the ball off for Silva.
It took a deep dive into the laws of the game to discover that, due to Mings' attempt to deliberately play the ball, the phase of play reset and Rodri was brought onside.
Smith appeared to reserve some choice words for referee Jon Moss, who quickly made his way to the touchline to first brandish the tactician a yellow card.
The caution was quickly upgraded, though, after Smith's appeals continued.
A late penalty from Ilkay Gundogan doubled City's lead and secured them three points which, potentially temporarily, sent them to the top of the table.
But after the game, Rio Ferdinand lambasted the decision to award the home team's first goal - and reserved particular criticism for Mings' failure to clear the ball.
He told BT Sport: 'I think it was a terrible decision. I think he's offside. He's affecting the game.
'I'm a centre half, you've got to clear this. He knows Rodri is there, he knows there's a player coming back from an offside position. Take all the uncertainty out of this by just clearing your lines.
'A football player should understand and have the awareness to know that there's a player coming back from offside. I'd either bring it down and play it to a team-mate or I'll get rid of it and reassess the situation. Any uncertainty, get rid.
'You would have been taught that as a kid. I still think, first and foremost, it's a terrible decision.'
Robbie Savage believes the blame lies primarily with Villa's under-fire centre back.
'It's a terrible decision from Mings,' he said. 'Poor chest control. They've defended ever so well all the game. As Rio says, head it clear.
'Mings might think he's offside but he's not. Because it's a deliberate act to play the ball, Rodri becomes active. He's won the ball. It's poor from Mings.'