Man City have already signed two Rodri replacements to offset huge injury blow

If anyone had seen a lengthy layoff coming, it might have been Rodri himself.

Just days before going down with his knee injury against Arsenal, the midfielder had mooted that players could go on strike due to the increasingly claustrophobic calendar. Over the past two seasons, Rodri played 131 matches for club and country.

Arguments about rotation may be put forward and perhaps he has fallen victim to his irreplaceable status but there simply should not be that number of games to play. And that’s before the expanded formats of the Champions League and Club World Cup that have come into effect this season.

ALSO READ: 'We're going to win the league' - Man City players convinced after seeing what Arsenal did at Etihad

ALSO READ: I saw what Arsenal staff really thought about Man City as they left the Etihad

Whether Rodri is indeed out for the season or a number of months, Pep Guardiola has been handed a problem he may have foreseen. The Manchester City manager has always kept a tight squad but has increased his pool of players from last year by two to 24 with more games on the schedule.

City fans saw how stretched the squad was at times throughout last season amid spates of bad injury luck and it seems the manager has acted accordingly. Though, if there was one man whose absence could shake the entire season it is Rodri.

The 28-year-old is currently on a 52-game unbeaten streak for Premier League fixtures he’s started, Sunday included. It’s a run that goes back to February 2023 and City’s four losses in the league since then have all come when he has been absent.

His success for both club and country has him as one of the favourites for the Ballon d’Or, underlining the task Guardiola has in coping without him.