Manchester City’s Rodri faces injury setback, out until mid-September

Abdullateef Fowewe

Manchester City midfielder Rodri has suffered a significant injury setback sustained during the Club World Cup match against Al-Hilal, ruling him out until mid-September at the earliest.

The 29-year-old, who had only recently returned from an eight-month suspension due to a previous ACL injury, will miss the start of the Premier League season and the early fixtures following the international break.

Pep Guardiola commented on the situation stressing, “Rodri is getting better but had a big injury in the last game against Al Hilal. He’s trained better recently, and we hope after the international break is when he will be really fit. It’s important he doesn’t have pain because we don’t want him coming back injured. We will try desperately to avoid that.”

Rodri’s absence is a major blow for City, who struggled last season without him and finished third in the league.

Meanwhile, Guardiola will rely on other midfield options such as Tijjani Reijnders, Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan, and Nico Gonzalez as the team’s engine room until Rodri’s return.