Since winning the treble with Barcelona in 2008, coach Pep Guardiola has become accustomed to the best years. However, he now faces a rare predicament - a run of four consecutive defeats for the first time in his 16-year coaching career.
A poor run of form has seen Manchester City knocked out of the Carabao Cup and struggle in the Champions League, while in the Premier League they are five points behind leaders Liverpool.
Obviously, The Citizens' current crisis comes from a myriad of causes: the frequent absence of key players, the dependence on Erling Haaland for goals, the uncertainty about Guardiola's future... However, none of those causes are more serious than the absence of Rodri.
"Imagine the Warriors losing Stephen Curry or Barcelona in their best moment without Messi. They should be less strong. That happens at Manchester City. Rodri is irreplaceable. But we have to move forward" - Guardiola admitted.
Although Mateo Kovacic has not been playing badly, everyone is seeing a Man City that is disorganised and vulnerable. "Replacing Rodri is not easy. It is a big task. But I am also happy to be under this pressure and to have an important role in the team," the Croatian midfielder said a few weeks ago.
Rodri’s absence has had a marked impact on Man City’s defence, allowing opponents more passes per defensive action (11.2 - 12.1), making fewer recoveries in the opposition half (16.8 - 11.9) and conceding more shots (6.25 - 6.86).
Therefore, it is not surprising that 10/13 goals conceded by The Citizens in the Premier League this season have come when Rodri is out (not counting the 7 goals conceded in the Carabao Cup and Champions League).
"We are less strong without Rodri. With him, we are better. But now he has to recover well for next season. We will play match by match" - Guardiola lamented.
In fact, no team in the Premier League over the years has been better at turning things around than Man City. However, in those moments, they almost always have the strongest cards.
As Guardiola compared after the loss to Brighton: "Liverpool, after winning the Champions League and the Premier League, also had difficulties. They had to go down to the Europa League when Virgil van Dijk was injured for the whole season."
So, will the same scenario happen to Man City when Rodri is absent for a long time?
