ShareRodri had only made two substitute outings for Spain since suffering his ACL injury, but he was back in the lineup against Serbia on Friday.Rodri described the feeling of making his first Spain start since 2024 – and doing so as captain in his former home stadium in Villarreal – as "unbeatable".Rodri donned the captain's armband and played 77 minutes before being replaced by Martin Zubimendi as Spain defeated Serbia 3-0 at the Estadio de la Ceramica on Friday.Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice for Luis de la Fuente's side, with Victor Munoz also netting on his debut to cap a one-sided affair, having replaced Oyarzabal from the bench. It was a particularly notable occasion for Rodri, who made 84 senior appearances for Villarreal after joining their youth setup from Atletico Madrid back in 2013.It was his first start on the international stage since a Nations League victory over Switzerland on September 8, 2024, shortly after La Roja defeated England in the Euro 2024 final, with Rodri being named Player of the Tournament. Since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury during a Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal a few weeks after the Switzerland game, Rodri had been limited to brief cameos off the bench against Bulgaria and Turkiye in the Nations League, but he is now glad to be playing a full role for his country again."The feeling is unbeatable," Rodri said after Friday's game. "It has been a long road, but we are already here, enjoying football and the national team again, which is the maximum we can dream of. It was a very special scenario for me."Things always change, with new players coming in too, but it's always the same mentality and the same way of understanding football. "We are in a very good moment, we don't have to relax, we still have things to improve and polish, the team is growing. They are friendly, but we don't treat them that way, and we are going for the next game."We go day by day, we don't think much further ahead. We have important games to prepare for and go with good feelings."We have to take them as an opportunity to test each other, understand each other, continue to grow and, obviously, the coach is trying new things."Egypt are Spain's next opponent on Tuesday, and that game represents another chance for Oyarzabal to continue climbing his country's all-time scoring charts.Friday's brace took him to 24 goals for his country, moving ahead of Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferran Torres and Sergio Ramos to go ninth outright in Spain's scoring charts. His next target is to overhaul Emilio Butragueno (26), and passing Fernando Morientes (27) and Fernando Hierro (29) could also be realistic in a World Cup year."I wouldn't have imagined being able to be there, but you always want more, you always want to keep pushing. I'm happy that the goals serve to help the team," Oyarzabal said."When I play like I did today, scoring goals, or when I play differently, I always try to look for the collective good."Rodri had only made two substitute outings for Spain since suffering his ACL injury, but he was back in the lineup against Serbia on Friday.Rodri described the feeling of making his first Spain start since 2024 – and doing so as captain in his former home stadium in Villarreal – as "unbeatable".Rodri donned the captain's armband and played 77 minutes before being replaced by Martin Zubimendi as Spain defeated Serbia 3-0 at the Estadio de la Ceramica on Friday.Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice for Luis de la Fuente's side, with Victor Munoz also netting on his debut to cap a one-sided affair, having replaced Oyarzabal from the bench. It was a particularly notable occasion for Rodri, who made 84 senior appearances for Villarreal after joining their youth setup from Atletico Madrid back in 2013.It was his first start on the international stage since a Nations League victory over Switzerland on September 8, 2024, shortly after La Roja defeated England in the Euro 2024 final, with Rodri being named Player of the Tournament. Since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury during a Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal a few weeks after the Switzerland game, Rodri had been limited to brief cameos off the bench against Bulgaria and Turkiye in the Nations League, but he is now glad to be playing a full role for his country again."The feeling is unbeatable," Rodri said after Friday's game. "It has been a long road, but we are already here, enjoying football and the national team again, which is the maximum we can dream of. It was a very special scenario for me."Things always change, with new players coming in too, but it's always the same mentality and the same way of understanding football. "We are in a very good moment, we don't have to relax, we still have things to improve and polish, the team is growing. They are friendly, but we don't treat them that way, and we are going for the next game."We go day by day, we don't think much further ahead. We have important games to prepare for and go with good feelings."We have to take them as an opportunity to test each other, understand each other, continue to grow and, obviously, the coach is trying new things."Egypt are Spain's next opponent on Tuesday, and that game represents another chance for Oyarzabal to continue climbing his country's all-time scoring charts.Friday's brace took him to 24 goals for his country, moving ahead of Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferran Torres and Sergio Ramos to go ninth outright in Spain's scoring charts. His next target is to overhaul Emilio Butragueno (26), and passing Fernando Morientes (27) and Fernando Hierro (29) could also be realistic in a World Cup year."I wouldn't have imagined being able to be there, but you always want more, you always want to keep pushing. I'm happy that the goals serve to help the team," Oyarzabal said."When I play like I did today, scoring goals, or when I play differently, I always try to look for the collective good."