Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri of Manchester City pose with the Premier League trophy
Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri are two key Manchester City players
Rodri's personal unbeaten run last season saw Nike put him at the forefront of a campaign which read 'Win so much you forget how to lose.'
Without him, Manchester City have lost so much they have forgotten how to win.
Whatever Pep Guardiola or City players say, the last 11 games have made it abundantly clear how integral the Ballon d'Or winner is to the Blues after he was ruled out for the season. His return can't come soon enough, but they must prepare for an uncomfortable truth when he is back in the squad.
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Rodri has said he hopes to be back before the end of the season - which extends to July with the Club World Cup - and one report suggests his rehabilitation is progressing ahead of schedule. This week he dialled into the FIFA Best awards ceremony from the CFA and he was in the tunnel during the Manchester United game to offer advice to his teammates.
That suggests he is playing a role behind the scenes at present and being in Manchester can only help the collective mission to turn form around. But the worse that form is, the bigger the expectation will be on the Spaniard when he does come back into the team.
Kevin De Bruyne is a good example - he missed five or six months last season and returned with a mission to prove, but admits he perhaps overdid it last season and has suffered in 2024/25.
"Last year was up and down, normal after being out after six months," he said in August. "I always had the idea of if the Euros went well physically and I had a rest after I'll come back refreshed. I feel good."
But then one awkward fall against Inter Milan and De Bruyne missed weeks of action and has been playing catch-up this season. Recently, he admitted his current injury woes are a direct result of the previous 12 months and his surgery at the start of last season.
“Last year was last year, I came back and think I did fine,” he said. “When I came back I felt really good in the first five games and then had a thing against Brentford that didn’t feel good but ended up being way worse than I wanted it to be.
“There’s not a lot to say but I couldn’t kick a ball, I could do a lot but I couldn’t move freely to do what I needed to do. In the [November] international break I moved around to see some people and I’m starting to feel better now. It’s been frustrating but I’m feeling better.”
To take that warning into Rodri's case, City would be foolish not to manage his minutes. He was injured because he played too much football in the seasons leading up to this one, so there must be a change in approach when he is back next season.
That is not to mention the added pressure internally and externally for when he's back. His stock and importance has grown exponentially in his absence with each passing defeat, and that won't do anybody any favours if a phased return doesn't result in immediate success.
So City can anticipate a new tactic with Rodri by bringing in support in his position, either in January or the summer. January may be wise given it took Rodri himself a year to adapt and others like Kalvin Phillips never got the hang of being a number six under Guardiola.
They only need to ask De Bruyne what they need to do.