A lot of things came from Manchester City Vs Arsenal at the weekend and the biggest was arguably Rodri’s, potential, season-ending injury. Going into the game, it was clear that Arsenal had a gameplan to get at the Spanish international, with Havertz clattering him in the opening minutes and the injury coming with him and Partey slightly tussling in the box.
This injury looked like an ACL and if it is, he will miss the rest of the season. This is sad for CIty and sad for football as a whole but Arsenal benefit the most out of everyone. The title race over the last 2 seasons has been really tight and Manchester City have pipped Arsenal to the title twice in a row with help from Rodri in big moments.
Who Will Replace Rodri For Man City?
Manchester City are known for the depth of their squad but the one position they have always struggled in for depth was defensive midfield. Rodri is very clear of every other midfielder in the world, especially defensive midfield and Man City could never find someone who was as useful as he is.
We can confirm that Rodri has suffered a ligament injury to his right knee.
Everyone at the Club wishes him a speedy recovery 🩵
More information 👇
— Manchester City (@ManCity) September 25, 2024
This has been an issue for a few years and with the signing of Kalvin Phillips being very unsuccessful, Manchester City have been dependent on Rodri in this position. However, it isn’t like they aren’t strong in midfield and don’t have players who can cover. Already this season, we have seen Gundogan, Rico Lewis and Kovacic cover the six where Rodri plays.
The players who I think will offer the best cover are Kovacic and Gundogan with Kovacic also there as an option. The arguable weakest position in the City team is the right back position with Kyle Walker slowly getting worse as time goes on. Rico Lewis has come in and played excellently, but he has a knack for moving into the defensive midfield position and cover.
What The Midfield For City Will Look Like
I think for most of the season now we will see Manchester City play an array of midfield threes and I also think Rico Lewis will come into the team over Kyle Walker in the big games. With Kevin De Bruyne injured right now and Phil Foden coming back from an injury, I think the midfield will swap a lot but will consist of Gundogan, Foden and Kovacic getting a lot of minutes as the season progresses.
How Arsenal Can Benefit From This
We saw as soon as Rodri came off on Sunday that Arsenal slowly started to dominate a lot more and looked better and more comfortable. This is a big sign for the Gunners and could be a confidence boost that Arsenal need. Going to the Etihad and picking up a result is already massive but doing without their main creative outlet, Odegaard, is another.
This is also an issue for Arsenal because we have seen that they have had a lot of injuries this season already. Manchester City last year had a fair share of injuries but Arsenal were lucky enough to escape injuries to their starters and this luck could run out and if it does, we could see Arsenal struggle.
Rodri missing out makes Arsenal the favourites for the title and if they can keep their players free of injury and keep their form going, we could see Man City’s consecutive title wins stop after four years.
Arsenal Odds
Many bookmaker odds have changed since the injury of Rodri, with Arsenal’s chances becoming increasingly likely. For example, some bookies have Arsenal at 6/4 to win the league or the best odds as a punter you can get really is 7/4. You can make your predictions on all of the best betting sites in the UK. If you sign up now, you can even claim a very rewarding welcome bonus! These welcome bonuses don’t only have to be used on the sports but also at the online casino if they have one, so if you are a fan of both, you’re in luck! One tip from us would be to go with one that has various payment methods, not just the traditional ones as you should always try another way of paying, like with Payz, where they ensure all your details are safe!