Manchester City take on RB Leipzig in their second Champions League group stage match on Wednesday afternoon.
When Rodri is available he starts, duh, and what a relief it is that he's available once more for Manchester City on Wednesday. Yet, for the first time in years, it might make more sense for the midfielder to sit a match out.
Pep Guardiola laughed off the significance of missing him ahead of the match, saying he would still have XI players on the pitch, but none of the others can do what he does. Nearly all of City's problems at Molineux stemmed from the loss of their lynchpin. Kovacic was far too sloppy with the ball. His passes were often lacking in conviction and left the receiver with a job to do, that's if they reached them at all. He also kept trying to go on the mazy runs he's so good at, but when you're doing them as the No.6 there's much more risk if they don't work. There's no Rodri cleaning up after you, that's the job you should be doing.
Does Kovacic get another bite of the cherry, putting his showing at Wolves down to a bad day? Does Phillips get the most unlikely of starts? It's still hard to see but the chances have increased. Is Matheus Nunes the one or is he seen as only an attacking outlet? Could even Rico Lewis or another defender be deployed there after looking good in an inverted role?
Given there is little jeopardy in dropping points in the group stage for City, taking the risk of not playing Rodri when he's available to give someone else some much-needed minutes ahead of a tougher test might be beneficial. But, then again, three defeats in a row could be a serious knock to City's confidence ahead of a massive match.
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