During the past 14 months, the Spanish midfielder has been mostly unavailable because of an serious knee injury sustained in a match with Arsenal, managing a mere 588 minutes of play in the colors of Manchester City as a result of a series of setbacks, the latest of which ruled him out from the midweek 4-1 triumph over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Although Pep Guardiola has mentioned that “his absence won’t be long-term,” the 29-year-old stands as fundamental to the manager’s system. Below, we evaluate the alternatives …
The Young Spaniard
“The primary choice when Rodri is out is absolutely Nico. Nico is making steps forward,” the City manager said prior to Sunday’s 3-1 win versus Bournemouth. Measuring 6ft 2in and aged 23 when signed for a substantial sum from Porto earlier this year, González is almost carbon copy of Rodri. Indeed, Guardiola labeled the ex- Barcelona player as a “mini-Rodri” last season, yet against Bournemouth there were instances when he was pressured and dispossessed in midfield in a way Rodri, at his very best, would not be. That is little shame, nevertheless, in not being in the same caliber as the Ballon d’Or winner.
Mateo Kovacic
The long-term loss of City’s only other deep-lying midfielder with an ankle issue will be a challenge for City if Nico also collect an injury during Rodri’s absence. The midfielder has shone often for City since joining the club from Chelsea for £25m in June 2023 and boasts a resume that makes clear he is a stellar talent. His former clubs feature Dinamo Zagreb, Inter and Real Madrid. He also has a plethora of honours to his name, such as one La Liga title, one Premier League title and four Champions League winner’s medals.
Rico Lewis
The young defender has recorded 103 outings for City, almost a quarter of which have been as a defensive midfielder. The boy from Bury is versed in the all-around awareness, control, defensive work and energy the duty requires in a Pep’s side, yet the manager has cited Lewis’s lack of height as a limitation in that role. “It’s necessary to have strength, for obvious reasons,” he said. “It was lower [needed] in Barcelona, Bayern Munich [Guardiola’s former teams].” Nearing 21 in the coming weeks, Lewis has time on his side and has room for development.
The Versatile Defender
“His contributions to the pitch is exceptional quality as a defender and possibly as a pivotal No 6.” The perspective there by Thomas Tuchel which aligns with Guardiola about the ‘versatile star’. Of Stones’s 408 professional club appearances, 27 were as a holding midfielder and he shone in that role when stepping up from defense to play with Rodri in City’s 2023 Champions League final victory over Inter. “The spatial awareness was the most difficult for me,” Stones has said about playing in the position. “I haven’t got that – I believe I do more now, but that’s from understanding where to receive the ball and how to handle it in particular moments.”
Tijjani Reijnders
The Dutchman joined City from Milan this past transfer window as a successor for Kevin De Bruyne. As he put it himself at the this year’s Club World Cup: “The No 8 position is why they [City] got me. Now I have to fill the No 8 and do my best to prove that I merit a place.” As González dealing with a fitness issue, Reijnders was deployed as a deep midfielder in the previous 1-0 setback at Aston Villa and was moved forward when the Spanish player came on shortly after the 60-minute mark, the episode giving a indication of where he stands in Guardiola’s plans, that is as a backup.
The Portuguese Midfielder
Of Brazilian origin Portugal international has featured in just nine times as a deep-lying midfielder during his career with the single outing in the position for City occurring against Nottingham Forest in September 2023. He played the 90 minutes and delivered an assist in a 2-0 triumph.
Kalvin Phillips
The club’s overlooked player is still only 29. He has featured as a holding midfielder on 164 occasions in his career and performed adequately in the role to be capped by England. Nevertheless, it is apparent he lacks the faith of Guardiola.
