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Published on 2024-02-10 09:14:35
Pep Guardiola praised the exceptional talent of Rodri after going a year without being on the losing side for Manchester City.
The 27-year-old midfielder played a total of 52 matches over the course of the last year, proving his vital role in the team.
From scoring crucial goals in the Champions League final to dictating games in the midfield, Rodri demonstrated his importance to City’s success.
In the last year, City faced challenges in games that Rodri missed, resulting in dropped points. Out of the seven games that Rodri was absent from, only two ended in wins for City.
Guardiola addressed the significance of the holding midfielder ahead of Manchester City’s match against Everton, highlighting his qualities such as composure, personality, and reaction to conceding a goal.
Guardiola emphasized that Rodri is an incredible and complete holding midfielder, praising his overall impact on the team.
“Well, the quality he has,” started the City boss. “The quality, the presence, the composure, the personality, how he reacts when we concede a goal, his body language, a thousand million things.
“He’s an incredible, complete holding midfielder, football player I would say. He’s really important, otherwise he would not play as much minutes as he has played.”
Despite the lack of substantial cover for Rodri, City’s other players have stepped up. The return of Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland has provided a boost to the team.
Additionally, Phil Foden is having a standout season, and City has gained an attacking threat from the flanks through the rise of Oscar Bobb from the academy.
However, Guardiola downplayed expectations of replicating their previous season’s success, particularly the prospect of achieving another Treble.
He expressed that winning against Everton was the primary focus and acknowledged the slim possibility of winning the Treble again.
Guardiola dismissed any talk of a “six-tuple” or “seven-tuple,” labeling it as a fairytale. He emphasized the complexity and challenges of achieving such remarkable feats, stressing the team’s primary goal of winning the next match. Guardiola maintained that the chances of achieving another Treble were minimal, considering the historical rarity of such achievements.
Read Original article on City Xtra
