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Rob Dawson, reporter
Manchester, England – Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola confirmed on Friday that midfielder Rodri will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament.
Rodri suffered a knee injury during the 2-2 draw with Arsenal and traveled to Spain for tests on Monday. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Guardiola confirmed that the Spain international had undergone surgery and would be out of action until the end of the season.
“He had surgery this morning, on his anterior cruciate ligament. Next season he will be here. This season is over. Unfortunately, we received the worst news but these things happen. We will be there to support him in his recovery step by step,” Guardiola said. He said.
City struggled to deal with Rodri’s absence last season, losing the only three matches he missed in the English Premier League. Guardiola described the 28-year-old as “irreplaceable” but said he had options in midfield including Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan and even defender John Stones.
“What he gives us, we don’t have a similar player,” Guardiola said. The City manager also confirmed that Kevin De Bruyne will miss Saturday’s trip to Newcastle due to a thigh injury.
“But others can all replace what Rodri has done since he arrived. We will have to do that as a team and find a way to play a lot of games without an important player for us.”
“Matteo Kovacic, I have a few other players. Ilkay Gundogan can play in this position, John Stones (does it) too. We have alternatives.”
Guardiola also left the door open to replace Rodri in the January transfer window. Kalvin Phillips, last season’s reserve, has moved to Ipswich Town on loan, and the City boss said the club could look to sign another midfielder when they have an opportunity after Christmas.
“We’ll see,” he said. “Today we spoke with (sporting director) Txiki (Begiristain) and we’ll see how it goes. We don’t have to decide tomorrow, right? We have time to see what possible problems we have, and we’ll see.”
