Man City warned of effect massive Rodri injury blow will have on dressing room

The sight of talisman Rodri limping off against rivals Arsenal no doubt stirred a feeling of dread in the souls of City fans. Following the news that the injury is to the Spaniard's knee ligaments, their worst fears may have been realised.

While Manchester City have some of the best squad depth in the world, many are suggesting that the 28-year-old is simply irreplaceable.

On the Stick to Football podcast, Ian Wright suggested that, while City have survived missing key players in the past, a longterm absence of Rodri would pose their biggest ever challenge.

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"There was a time where Manchester City even did it without [Kevin] De Bruyne" the former Arsenal forward pointed out.

"They’ve taken all their top players out and they’ve still done what they needed to, but if you take Rodri out, he’s so important. There's nobody more important to Man City than Rodri."

Later on the podcast, host Gary Neville asked which player City would miss most of they were injured. While Jamie Carragher plumped for goal machine Erling Haaland, Wright, Roy Keane and Jill Scott all picked Rodri.

As well as his ability to control the midfield, and ability to break up counter attacks, the pundits pointed out another aspect of the former Villarreal man's game that City will miss.

"You look at his goals and how many games they win when he’s playing. it’s a massive blow for them" said Wright.

The stats certainly don't paint a pretty picture of life for City without the big Spaniard. According to Opta, Guardiola's side have won just under three quarters (74%) of matches