Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola cut a frustrated figure during the 3-3 draw with Everton on Monday night
Rodri.
Replacing Rodri is proving to be extremely difficult for Manchester City again(Image: Copa/Getty Images)
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Pep Guardiola looked downbeat as he spoke to reporters after Manchester City's draw with Everton - as everyone would have been in his position. He defended the players and their performance in the 3-3 draw but it wasn't hard to look past that on a night when the Blues gave up any control they had in the Premier League title race with less than three weeks to go.
As much as City need a favour from one of Arsenal's remaining opponents, Guardiola was clear that his team need to focus on themselves. After giving away three goals at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, Saturday's home game against a Brentford side that have been one of the stories of the season hardly seems simple.
Included in Guardiola's analysis of Monday's game was how good City's second and third goals were, and the second came about because Mateo Kovacic did something the man he had replaced hadn't done all game: fed Erling Haaland with a forward pass. The Norwegian did the rest and City were back in the game.
The circumstances of the game have to be taken into account in the sense that Everton were giddy after going 3-1 up and hadn't properly set when City surprised them. Kovacic had not been great defensively for that third goal, so it wasn't like he was the Rodri-shaped hole that had been missing.
It had been a thoroughly frustrating night for Nico Gonzalez though, City's hero from Wembley and the man who has had to watch from the sidelines for months with Rodri and Bernardo Silva making a partnership that would not be moved. On a number of occasions in the first half, Guardiola was visibly frustrated as the Spaniard turned back and played the safe pass rather than pushing it forward to teammates.
When City really needed control in the second half, Gonzalez was not able to provide it and it was telling as City chased the game that Guardiola decided to use one of his substitutions bringing on one holding midfielder for another. Kovacic may have his deficiencies but he gave City something that Guardiola had been crying out for Gonzalez to give.
City's manager will properly review the Everton game over the next few days as he works out the best plan for Brentford. The ideal option would be if Rodri is deemed fully fit by the weekend.
Looking at his body language at the Hill Dickinson Stadium though and listening to his comments about the impact of substitutes after the game, it would not be a surprise at all if Kovacic comes in for Gonzalez on Saturday as City try to rescue their title challenge.