How Pep Guardiola can turn water into wine with the loss of Rodri - and he's done it before

Manchester City fans have been hit with devastating news regarding Rodri’s injury. The midfield maestro sustained the injury in last weekend’s 2-2 draw against fellow title contenders Arsenal. Fans initially expected the injury to be minor, but unfortunately, it is being reported as a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

The Spaniard is expected to be sidelined for several months. However, the full extent of the injury remains unclear, even to his coach Pep Guardiola, who shared two contrasting views from medical experts on the severity of the injury.

The City manager had this to say about Rodri’s condition: “One doctor said it's a big, big injury... the other said not as much, so we'll see. Now it's important to support him. Safe recovery, I would say, not even a speedy recovery. Safe recovery for his future, for his career.”

Losing a key player to injury is always a blow for any club, but time and time again, Guardiola has proven that he is the most important figure at City. Rodri’s absence will certainly be felt, but the degree of impact depends on how Guardiola adjusts.

Once upon a time, Kevin De Bruyne was the main man in City’s squad. He was instrumental in helping the team win the Premier League title with a record 100 points in the 2017/18 season. The following campaign, 2018/19, De Bruyne struggled with injuries, which gave rise to Bernardo Silva. Silva had a different style compared to De Bruyne, and while he didn’t rack up as many assists, he played a crucial role in delivering the league title against arguably the best Liverpool side of this era.

Guardiola has a knack for finding solutions. Even when things seem fine, he’s known to tweak his approach. During the treble-winning season, City’s first-half performances weren’t poor, yet Guardiola made a significant tactical shift, deploying four traditional centre-backs, with John Stones stepping into midfield during the crucial part of the season. This worked seamlessly until Kyle Walker regained his spot in the team.

Ilkay Gündoğan was arguably the best player during the treble-winning season, and despite his departure at the end of that campaign, the team hasn’t skipped a beat, with Phil Foden having a standout season so far. Guardiola has an exceptional ability to mould his midfielders—whether offensive or defensive—to fit anywhere on the pitch. Silva and Foden have excelled both wide and centrally. Don’t be surprised to see them as central midfielders in a tweaked 4-3-3 formation, with either Mateo Kovačić or one of the other midfielders stepping in as a ‘regista’ to compensate for the control lost with Rodri’s absence.

The Citizens may have lost one of their most important players, but they can still count on the most important figure in the squad—Pep Guardiola—to steer them toward another Premier League title, and possibly, if luck permits, the UEFA Champions League.

After all, this is the genius who won the league with Fabian Delph playing left-back, clinched the treble with John Stones in midfield, and beat Liverpool to the title with Kevin De Bruyne missing half the season. He did the same last season against Arsenal.