Manchester City will begin their title defense against Chelsea on Sunday but they will play the match without their key midfield star Rodri.
City are bidding to make it five straight top-flight titles and while Pep Guardiola will be able to call upon England trio Phil Foden, John Stones and Kyle Walker, the Spaniard has confirmed that Rodri will not be ready.
Rodri played an important role in Spain’s victory at the 2024 European Championship but the 28-year-old Spaniard just returned to training after being forced off at half-time during his country’s win against England in the final.
Speaking about Rodri, Guardiola said: “He is in training. I don’t know, I haven’t seen him yet. He feels good. We’ll have to see how he feels after training.”
When asked if he could be involved at Stamford Bridge, Guardiola replied: “No chance.”
Rodri
Foden, Stones and Walker could be included in the squad despite only returning to training in midweek after an extended break.
“I’m pretty sure they won’t be ready for 90 minutes, maybe yes, maybe 15 minutes,” Guardiola said.
“The important thing is everybody is back and except for Oscar (Bobb) the rest are OK.”
Man City will be without Oscar Bobb who will have surgery on Friday to repair a fractured bone in his leg following a non-contact training ground incident on Wednesday. Speaking about the youngster, Guardiola noted that the Norway winger will be sidelined for up to four months.
“Unfortunately, he had a big impact and got injured,” Guardiola said. “He is having surgery this afternoon.
“Hopefully, it will go well and he will be back in three or four months. We are so sad for him.”
