Manchester City midfielder Rodri could be set to miss the rest of the season with the injury that he picked up against Arsenal over the weekend. And that could have big implications in the Premier League title race.
According to the Daily Mirror, Pep Guardiola could be without his most influential player for the rest of the season with no natural replacement for him. Manchester City bought Kalvin Phillips as an understudy for Rodri but that move never worked out.
Mateo Kovacic, who came on for Rodri at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, would be one option to replace him regularly. Ilkay Gundogan, who was re-signed from Barcelona in the summer, could be another.
Liverpool and Arne Slot, of course, are hoping to finish in top spot in the Dutchman's debut campaign in charge. And without Rodri, Manchester City is undoubtedly more vulnerable. The Spaniard is comfortably the best player in his position in the world.
Since Rodri joined Manchester City from Atletico Madrid for around $83m (£62m/€74m) in the summer of 2019, the Citizens' record with and without him speaks volumes about how influential he is. Guardiola's outfit has won 74 per cent, drawn 15 per cent and lost just 11 per cent of the 260 matches in which he has played in across all competitions.
In comparison, it has won only 64 per cent, drawn 11 per cent and lost 24 per cent of the 45 games without him. Manchester City has picked up 129 wins from a possible 174 Premier League matches since Rodri's debut in the 2019-20 season, drawing 26 times, and losing just 19.
Rodri is unbeaten in his last 51 league games — last losing against Tottenham in February 2023. That is the longest record of any player in Europe's top five leagues since he arrived in the Premier League.
Overall, Manchester City has had a win percentage of 74 per cent with Rodri on the pitch, while it has only come out on top in 62 per cent of its top-flight matches without the Spaniard. He was missing for the first three matches of this season, though, which Manchester City won.
In the Premier League, Manchester City has won 13, drawn one and lost seven when he has been absent. Domestically, Guardiola's team has averaged 2.37 points per game when Rodri is involved but only 1.86 when he is not available. The sample size is relatively small for now, but that is about to grow. Liverpool and Arsenal should be eyeing up the chance to take advantage.
