Manchester City’s Rodri will miss Tuesday’s Champions League clash against Villarreal due to injury.
The Spain international was a regular for Manchester City until he suffered a serious blow to his knee in September 2024. This forced him to spend the majority of last season on the sidelines.
Rodri regained full fitness in May and featured in the Club World Cup. He has struggled with injuries on two different occasions this season and is currently on the sidelines.
Ahead of Manchester City’s European clash against Villarreal, Pep Guardiola spoke about the 29-year-old’s situation to Movistar Plus. Marca have relayed his comments.
The manager suggests Rodri’s repeated setbacks this season is a result of the serious knee injury he sustained in 2024.
“If Rodri were fit, I would play him almost every day, but that’s the situation he’s in,” he said.
“Everyone knows that when you have an injury as serious as the one Rodri had last year, there are always setbacks.”
The Manchester City boss is disappointed that the Citizens’ efforts to prevent the star from picking up injuries weren’t successful.
“We tried to prevent Rodri from having those setbacks, but unfortunately, he has had one or two since the start of the league,” Guardiola explained.
Guardiola wants to be cautious not to rush Rodri, who has played seven matches this season, back from an injury.
“Rodri is now going to recover well and come back strong. And at that point, we will try to give him the minutes he needs so that he doesn’t relapse,” he added.
The Manchester City coach remains optimistic that “we’ll see his [Rodri] best” this season.