Erling Haaland's first-half strike earned Man City a hard-fought 1-0 win at Brentford, which moves them to within three points of Premier League leaders Arsenal - but an injury to Rodri was a worrying blow.
City were completely dominant during a first half which saw in-form Haaland bulldoze past Sepp van den Berg to blast in his 18th goal of the season for club and country.
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Erling Haaland 'crashes' City into the lead
Caoimhin Kelleher also made a stunning stop from Tijjani Reijnders, while Phil Foden missed a string of chances. Brentford didn't manage a touch in the City box and the visitors should have been out of sight.
But Rodri's exit on 20 minutes after he pulled up clutching his right thigh will concern Pep Guardiola, who had been managing the midfielder's minutes as he continued to build up his fitness after his long ACL layoff last season. There was at least the encouraging sign of Rodri later coaching his team-mates from the sidelines and then celebrating on the pitch at full-time.
Man City's Rodri went off injured at Brentford
Image: Man City's Rodri went off injured at Brentford
Rodri's absence was a big factor in Man City's drop-off last term and City lost their stranglehold on this contest after the break, as Brentford upped the intensity. Igor Thiago squandered their best chance, allowing Gianluigi Donnarumma the opportunity to close him down in a one-on-one situation. There was an onslaught of high balls into the City box too.
Another record for Guardiola
Pep Guardiola now has 250 wins in the Premier League. This was his 349th game in charge in the competition, meaning he has reached the milestone faster than any other manager. (Former record holder Arsene Wenger got to 250 wins in 423 games).
But City - who conceded a last-gasp equaliser at Monaco in the Champions League on Wednesday - stood up and held on to go into the international break on a seven-game unbeaten run and in an encouraging league position. Brentford - who failed to score for the first time this season - remain 16th.
More to follow.
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