Manchester City can mount a title challenge without Rodri this season, according to Louis Saha.
Speaking to Paddy Power, Saha said that manager Pep Guardiola is more than capable of coming up with “a plan” that will mitigate the loss of one of their key players:
“Rodri is a unique player who knows his position so well and established himself as one of the top players in the world. When you lose a player like him, with his confidence and physicality, you must adapt and whoever takes his place has a big job. That doesn’t mean that Manchester City have lost their tag of favourites – that’s not the case. The players in Rodri’s shadow will have to perform but I’m sure they’re capable of doing this and I’m sure Pep Guardiola can adapt.”
“I still think that Manchester City have the squad and have strong players. Pep will find a plan, it won’t be easy, but he’ll find something. Liverpool and Arsenal will have their own problems with injuries, and they will have to adapt more than Manchester City because they don’t have replacements for big players.”
City are not the favourites at the bookmakers
Since Rodri’s injury, the Premier League champions have seen their odds lengthen. Arsenal are regarded as the leading contender (with Paddy Power pricing them at 13/10)
The Cityzens remain close second favourites, while current leaders Liverpool are third in the running at the moment.
How can Guardiola replace Rodri?
It should be pointed out that the Spanish international had only started two games this season prior to being sidelined with an ACL. He had actually been out with a hamstring problem at the beginning of the campaign.
Despite his absence, City coped without him, with Mateo Kovacic (in particular) stepping up to the plate. In addition to the Croatian, the likes of Matheus Nunes, Rico Lewis and even John Stones have the ability to play as a holding midfielder if required.
Find out who is in Manchester City’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here
