Manchester City’s nine-game unbeaten run has come to an end, and a familiar problem has come to the fore.
On Sunday, Josep Guardiola’s side lost 1-0 to Aston Villa, with Matty Cash the only scorer of the afternoon, handing the Sky Blues their third straight defeat at Villa Park for the first time since 1966.
Midfield was certainly the biggest problem position for the Citizens.
With Rodri still sidelined and Nico González, Rodri’s original replacement, suffering a bruise in Tuesday’s Champions League match against Villarreal, Tijani Lijnders was deployed as a one-man midfield in the Midlands, but struggled both in and out of possession.
So, with an important and challenging match on the horizon, should Guardiola recall the most experienced member of the team who has been compared to perhaps the club’s best midfielder during his time in Abu Dhabi?
Rodri’s importance to Manchester City in numbers
Manchester City’s poor performance last season was largely due to the absence of Rodri, who played a disastrous 73 minutes against Arsenal in the Premier League after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament.
Now, having started just three Premier League games so far this season, the Ballon d’Or player suffered a hamstring injury at Brentford earlier this month, a huge blow for both team and player, but a return date is yet to be revealed.
Manchester City have only lost 38 of 237 Premier League games since making his debut for West Ham in August 2019, but the Spaniard has missed 17 of those games (45%), including 16 of the 18 games since February 5, 2023 against Tottenham.
In fact, the 2-1 comeback against Brighton in August was the first time in 938 days that Rodri had started and lost a Premier League game.
In summary, to reiterate the obvious, he is extremely important to Guardiola’s team and they simply won’t be the same without the fulcrum in midfield. So, with both Lijnders and Nico struggling to fill his void, do Man City have the ideal candidate for this role in their team?
Manchester City’s ideal Rodri deputy
Having spent over £380 million in the summer transfer window since January, many of Manchester City’s existing players have been rather forgotten.
Well, Mateo Kovacic certainly fits into that category, but he could certainly still be a useful contributor.
After missing the Club World Cup in June after needing surgery on his Achilles tendon, the Croatian international hasn’t been in his best form this season until coming off the bench in games against Everton and Villarreal in the last week or so.
Nevertheless, Kovacic was a very important figure in Guardiola’s team last season, as described in the table below.
Kovacic 2024/25 Statistics | ||
|---|---|---|
statistics | Kovacic | man city standings |
the goal | 7 | 4th place |
shot | 51 | 7th place |
Goal – xG | +4.8 | 1st place |
completed path | 2,020 | 4th place |
key pass | 35th place | 7th place |
A big opportunity has arisen | 6 | 8th place |
Passed 3rd place in finals | 240 | 4th place |
progressive path | 193 | 3rd place |
tackle | 74 | 1st place |
intercept | 30 | second |
Touches per 90 | 87.8 | 3rd place |
average rating | 7.31 | 4th place |
Statistics by FBref and SofaScore | ||
As the table highlights, Kovacic was one of Man City’s best performers last season.
Only Erling Braut Haaland, Omar Marmouche and Phil Foden have scored more goals across all competitions, while he also ranks very highly in chance-making, passing, touch and defensive metrics such as tackles and interceptions, which is a fancy way of saying he is an all-action midfielder.
During his time at Chelsea, then-manager Frank Lampard described him as “smart”, but after the 3-2 win against Fulham 12 months ago, Guardiola described him as a “copy-and-paste” Rodri.
Meanwhile, former Man City defender Mika Richards described Kovacic as “similar to Yahya (Toure)”, perhaps the best midfielder in the club’s history, and concluded that the Croatian was a vital player, noting that “he can beat three players with his skills”.
Toure, especially in the 2013/14 season, was untouchable in his flamboyance, both literally and figuratively, and is perhaps the best all-round midfielder in Premier League history, and while he may not be that great, Kovacic certainly shares similar well-rounded traits.
So, with important games against powerhouses Bournemouth, Borussia Dortmund and then-beleaguered champions Liverpool all coming up in the next fortnight, Kovacic’s return could be the Sky Blues’ under-the-radar secret weapon.
The Citizens travel to Swansea City in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, and while it would probably be wise for Guardiola to give the Croatian time off to rebuild his fitness, the south Welshman could get a glimpse of the under-the-radar Kalvin Phillips after his cameo appearance in the third round.
