- Rodri injured his knee in Manchester City’s thrilling draw with Arsenal on Sunday
- The Spaniard is currently in Barcelona awaiting the severity of the matter.
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Pep Guardiola has vowed that Manchester City will not use Rodri’s long absence as an excuse in their latest Premier League title defence.
Rodri is in Barcelona awaiting a second opinion on the knee injury sustained during Sunday’s draw with Arsenal, but City fear he could miss the season.
Guardiola admitted the 28-year-old will be out for an extended period but will find ways to soften the blow.
“We don’t have a definitive answer yet, but he will be out for a long time, a while, but perhaps less than we expected,” Guardiola said.
‘I can’t tell you because we’re waiting for calls from him and the doctors to know exactly what he has and what kind of surgery he’ll have to do. I think we’ll know tonight, tomorrow.
Rodri injured his knee after just 16 minutes of the match between Manchester City and Arsenal
Pep Guardiola has confirmed that the Spanish midfielder will not play “for a long time”
Mateo Kovacic (right) could prove to be the solution Guardiola said he will need to find
“We don’t want it, but we will still have a good season. I have a lot of faith in my players. I have a duty to find a solution.”
“Rodri is irreplaceable and the team will not play with the best midfielder in the world for a long, long time. Of course it is a very, very hard blow for us.
‘It’s football, it has happened and my duty is to find a solution, to be competitive as we have been for many years.
‘Rodri is not here, it’s a problem. But complaining? I feel sorry for him. I hope he recovers as well as possible, we’re waiting for him, that’s why. That’s the challenge. Go to Newcastle, try to win, do what we’ve done for many years. It’s that simple.’
Guardiola also revealed he sent a message to Mikel Arteta amid the fallout from City’s draw with the Gunners, claiming his former assistant’s tactical set-up was nothing new.
Tensions flared after City’s equaliser against the Gunners on Sunday afternoon.
Guardiola revealed he told Mikel Arteta they ‘did amazing’ despite City players criticising Arsenal’s tactics
“It’s good, they’ve been brilliant,” added the City manager. “I admire what they’ve done, I can’t do that with my team.”
‘I told Mikel that they had done incredibly well, that there was no problem. They know their players and they do what they have to do.
“Opponents can play however they want. It’s up to us to control them. We play defense against a lot of teams. Do you know how many times teams play like that? Millions. It’s all about us.”
