Everton are preparing for their return to club football this weekend, and recent injury news for Manchester City has given them a boost.
It is guaranteed to be a tough test for David Moyes’ men this weekend as they travel to face Manchester City away from home, especially with the Premier League giants undefeated in their past seven games.
Everton will also be without Jack Grealish this weekend, as he is ineligible to play due to his loan deal from Pep Guardiola’s side.
However, the Toffees have received some good news ahead of the game in the form of an injury announcement.
Everton manager David Moyes.
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Rodri is a doubt for Manchester City this weekend
It has been confirmed that Rodri missed Manchester City training on Thursday following the international break, and the midfielder is a doubt heading into the weekend.
It’s an obvious blow for Guardiola, given how talented the former Ballon d’Or winner is, and how frequently he is used within the team.
Rodri has featured in five of Manchester City’s seven Premier League games this season, only not featuring due to injury.
That could be the case once again this weekend, which would weaken Guardiola’s team slightly and provide more opportunities for Everton to exploit them.
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Rodri limped off during Manchester City’s most recent game against Brentford and pulled out of the Spain team during the international break.
Therefore, Rodri’s continued absence from training this week has become a worrying situation, as his fitness still has question marks surrounding it.
How much of a loss is Rodri for Pep Guardiola’s team?
While Manchester City’s squad is filled with incredible talent, losing Rodri is undoubtedly a significant blow to the eight-time Premier League champions.
Guardiola’s side typically performs better with Rodri in the heart of the pitch due to his ability to control the play, whether it’s slowing the game down, releasing key passes, or simply breaking up the attacks.
With him potentially not being available, Guardiola will be forced to consider other options that are less strong than him.
This is something that Moyes’ midfield will then be able to exploit, potentially giving the Toffees a great chance at success.