Pep Guardiola hailed Phil Foden despite the Manchester City midfielder being sent off in their 5-1 win against Atalanta.
The academy graduate was handed a second yellow card late on in the Champions League Group C tie.
It marred an otherwise outstanding performance on a rare start for the 19-year-old.
But he will avoid further punishment from Guardiola.
“I never fine except for a stupid thing,” said the City manager. “With Phil, the important thing is not the red card, but the way he played.
“He has to be a bit more clever when he has the yellow. He has to live this kind of situation to understand.
“Yellow card, be careful. That experience is going to help him. Maybe I have to pay him, so well he played.”
Raheem Sterling scored a hat-trick and made two more goals for Sergio Aguero in a stunning performance after Ruslan Malinovskyi had put Atalanta ahead from the penalty spot.
While Guardiola was full of praise for the England forward, he thought it was a night when Foden excelled.
“We thought it was a game like we could have the opportunity to run, more actions on the counter-attack,” he added. “Phil has this quality to make box to box and this speed, It was a tactical decision why he played.
“He is a young guy, still room to improve. Last season one of the key games Tottenham he played and played so good. More experience for him every minutes he played. He played in a high high level.”
On Sterling he added: “All the credit is for him. He can be better but it is perfect.
“His physicality is incredible, he is strong. The day after a game he could play another. He can play on both sides, he is fast. He helps us a lot.”
Rodri will have tests to learn the extent of the hamstring injury he suffered in the first half.
