There was one real concern for Manchester City to emerge from yesterday’s win over Brentford | OneFootball

Rodri limped off midway through the first half of Manchester City’s 1-nil win over Brentford yesterday. The Manchester City midfielder appeared to sustain a hamstring injury while stretching to control a pass in the game’s opening 20 minutes. He would be replaced by Nico. The sight of Rodri going down with a hamstring injury was the only real concern to come out of yesterday’s match for Pep Guardiola’s side. Rodri spoke after the game, and it seems his injury isn’t too serious. It is just part of the process as he continues to build up his fitness after suffering an ACL injury last season.

Rodri hopes to be available for the next Manchester City match after the international break.

In an interview relayed by Simon Bajkowski for Manchester Evening News, Rodri spoke about the hamstring injury he sustained yesterday. Manchester City’s midfield general revealed that his hamstring injury isn’t as bad as first feared. It was also revealed that Rodri will not participate in Spain’s upcoming internationals as he recovers from the injury he sustained yesterday. Speaking on his injury, Rodri said: “I’m good. I felt a little bit in the hamstring, but it seems like it’s not that much. The important thing was the victory.”

“I stretched the leg a little bit, a bit like in the Euros final, I stretched a little bit, but it’s part of the process.”

“I don’t feel that I feel tired muscle-wise, I feel fresh, but the most important thing is it’s not that big.”

“It’s part of the process. The good thing about this is you get out, you don’t let the muscle stretch now. The good thing is the break, so it will be even better in this sense to recover these days, and hopefully I can be in the next game.”

Rodri’s return to full fitness is an ongoing process.

The sight of Rodri hunched over, injured at the GTech Community Stadium, was a real cause for concern for Manchester City. But Rodri’s revelation that the hamstring injury he sustained isn’t too serious is a relief. The fact that Rodri picked up a hamstring injury illustrates that his return to full fitness isn’t a linear process.

Rodri sustained a devastating ACL injury last season. His comeback from such an injury will be such that he will suffer niggling injuries at times. He has shown that his form remains after such a long injury lay-off. The issue is that he isn’t ready to play three games a week just yet. Rodri did exactly when City played Manchester United, Napoli and Arsenal in succession. He subsequently missed City’s win over Burnley due to fatigue. Rodri lasted an hour in Manchester City’s 2-all draw with AS Monaco and only got through 20 minutes yesterday against Brentford. He isn’t fit enough to carry a heavy workload, so the Manchester City fitness staff must manage his fitness. That isn’t a cause for concern, it’s just part of the process that comes with Rodri’s recovery.

Fortunately, it seems that Rodri didn’t sustain a serious hamstring injury against Brentford yesterday. There does seem to be a chance that he could play in Manchester City’s next Premier League fixture against Everton. Rodri now has an opportunity to rest and recover over the international break. That could be the best thing to happen in Rodri’s bid to return to full fitness.