Newcastle United are preparing to face Manchester City without Rodri on Saturday.
The Premier League champions will be at St James’ Park this weekend, but they will be without arguably their most important player.
And they could be without him for a long time, amid fears that Rodri’s season is over due to a knee injury.
Pep Guardiola admitted that Rodri ‘felt something’ during the Arsenal game which forced him to come off, and the Manchester City manager is now waiting for the full diagnosis.
And Guardiola believes that full diagnosis is imminent, with the 28-year-old set to be ruled out of Saturday’s Premier League clash with Newcastle United and beyond.
Pep Guardiola shares Rodri injury update
Manchester City were in action on Tuesday night, as they beat Watford 2-1 in the Carabao Cup. Newcastle were also supposed to be in action, but their third round tie with Wimbledon has been postponed until next week.
Following the win over Watford, Guardiola spoke to Manchester City’s official website about Rodri’s status before looking towards Saturday’s game on Tyneside.
“[Rodri] Will be out for a long time, a while,” he said.
“But there are some opinions that it may be less than we expect.
“Right now I can’t tell you. We’re waiting on the last phone calls from the doctors. What he has and what type of surgery he has to get.
“I expect [we will find out] tomorrow. Tonight, tomorrow we will know it. The Club will inform.”
Guardiola looks forward to Newcastle United trip
Guardiola added that he feels sorry for Rodri and other long-term absentee Oscar Bobb, but he is not going to dwell on their absences.
“I feel so sorry for Rodri and for Oscar Bobb too but what are we going to do? Guys we are with you and you have the best medical department,” he said.
“Three months without Erling [Haaland] and five without Kevin [De Bruyne] we won the Premier League in spite of many things.”
“You have to go for it. This is the challenge. It’s nice. Always happens. What you have to do. I’m sorry it’s a pity. Let’s go.
“Go to Newcastle to try to win the game. It is what it is. Me as manager can reflect what we can do better.”
Newcastle will not underestimate Man City without Rodri
Not having a player of Rodri’s calibre is a blow for Manchester City, particularly in the long-run.
In the immediate future, Newcastle United will not underestimate the Premier League champions just because their star midfielder is unavailable. Man City have triumphed without Rodri before – Sunday’s game against Arsenal was actually his first Premier League start of the season.
While Guardiola might not have a direct replacement for the Euro 2024 winner, there are plenty of players that can take his place.
Eddie Howe will be keen to focus on his own game, as his team have their own problems. Newcastle United are massively out of form, while their midfield is all over the place.
The Magpies have a lot of options in the middle of the park, yet Howe has been unable to strike the right balance. That will be the challenge on Saturday, with Sandro Tonali hopefully coming into the side for his first Premier League start since October 2023.
Elsewhere, Howe must decide whether to start Tino Livramento or Kieran Trippier at right-back against Manchester City.
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