Rodri-shaped hole exposed by James Maddison with move Manchester City should have seen coming

James Maddison has explained that he was able to exploit the lack of presence in Manchester City's midfield to score a goal that he has been working on all season.

Man City were hoping to bounce back from four consecutive defeats before the November international break, especially after the good news that Pep Guardiola has committed his future to the club. Instead it was a night to forget as they fell 4-0 to Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad Stadium.

A first Premier League home defeat in over two years was orchestrated by Maddison. The 28-year-old netted both first-half goals for the visitors, his first being a close range finish from a Dejan Kulusevski cross.

After the full-time whistle, he told Sky Sports that this was possible because nobody tracked him from midfield into the penalty area.

“I think I’ve actually made a few of them runs this season, got the ball and then it’s not been spoken about. There’s been times I’ve made that left-half space run where I’ve found myself with the midfielder picking me up but if I burst quickly it’s like they’re not sure who is picking me up," Maddison explained.

"With the quality Kulusevski has got on that left foot, I actually said to him pre-game when you cut in look for that inswinging cross. You look at the replay there, I barely have to break stride and it’s just about getting a good contact. It’s nice."

Guardiola has been handed many conundrums over his eight-and-a-bit seasons with Man City, and he has often tinkered to find solutions that have proven the difference in title races.

Perhaps none of these problems have been greater than the absence of Rodri, who was actually back on the pitch today to show off his Ballon d'Or trophy, though he will actually be missing from action