Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola spoke about Rodri after naming his first team for the Club World Cup
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Rodri came back against Bournemouth
Rodri came back against Bournemouth
Pep Guardiola said that he wants to be reassured Rodri is completely fine as he works his way back from a long-term injury. The Spaniard was left on the bench for the Club World Cup opener against Wydad, with his Manchester City manager admitting he is not ready for 90 minutes yet.
City were ready to rule Rodri out until next season when he suffered an ACL injury in September. However, the Ballon d'Or winner was insistent that he would return and came off the bench in a crunch Premier League game against Bournemouth last month.
That appearance seemed to suggest that Rodri had won his fitness battle, although Guardiola's latest comments indicate he still has a long way to go. As keen as City are to get the Spaniard back onto the pitch on a regular basis, there are still concerns about rushing him back before he is ready.
"I would love to. He's not for 90 minutes and I have doubts but everybody wants to see him back," Guardiola told DAZN. "At the same time, I want to be reassured that everything is fine."
Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki were given starts for City following their summer moves while January arrivals Omar Marmoush and Vitor Reis were also named in the starting XI. Having confirmed four captains for the season on Tuesday, Guardiola started none of them on Wednesday with Ederson given the armband.
However, there may not be too much to read into any of that as the manager reiterated that there will be lots of rotation in future games. With 27 players in the squad for this tournament, there will be plenty of opportunities for Rodri and the rest.
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"Everybody is going to play in this tournament," he said. "We'll be all together for 11 months, the season starts today and finishes next May.
"Everybody is going to play and everybody has to be involved or it is not sustainable next season for physicality and team selection. I trust all of them and maybe next game we will change a lot."
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