Pep Guardiola issues fresh Rodri injury update after AS Monaco substitution | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Rodri was withdrawn midway through the second-half of Wednesday night’s 2-2 away draw against AS Monaco.

Rodri has been grappling with concerns in the knee he underwent surgery on in the last month, with the 29-year-old slowly returning to full fitness after spending nearly the entirety of the 2024-25 campaign on the sidelines.

The Spain international suffered an ACL rupture in a 2-2 draw with Arsenal in September 2024 that kept him on the treatment table for the best part of nine months, with Rodri making his long-awaited return to action in a 3-1 win over Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium in May.

Pep Guardiola and his new coaching staff – comprising Pepijn Lijnders and Kolo Toure – have been careful with managing the midfielder’s minutes this season after Rodri suffered an injury setback at the FIFA Club World Cup in the United States in June.

That setback delayed Rodri’s return to fitness and the Ballon d’Or winning star missed Manchester City’s opening game of the 2025-26 Premier League season, a 4-0 win away at Wolves, making his Premier League return the following week in a 2-0 defeat at home to Tottenham.

Guardiola has admitted that it will take time and patience for Rodri to reach the levels he maintained throughout Manchester City’s four-year domination of the English top-flight, spearheading City to a historic treble in the 2022-23 season by scoring the winner in their UEFA Champions League final win over Inter Milan in Istanbul.

Rodri has been hit and miss so far this season in terms of fitness and Guardiola has publicly stated that he will allow his star midfield lynchpin ample time to ease his way back to full fitness as Manchester City navigate a period of transition on and off the pitch after a crossroads summer transfer window.

There is little doubt over Rodri’s importance to this Manchester City side as his absence was one of the major underlying reasons for the disastrous, sobering 2024-25 season endured by Guardiola and co – wherein they finished third in the Premier League with 71 points, exited the UEFA Champions League at the Round of 16 stage and lost the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace.

The reliable form shown by January signing Nico Gonzalez has allowed Guardiola to phase Rodri back into the frame at his own pace since the start of the season, with Mateo Kovacic also back in full first-team training after undergoing surgery on his Achilles in the summer.

Rodri started for Manchester City in their 2-2 draw with AS Monaco in the UEFA Champions League group-stage at Stade Louis II on Wednesday evening – as a brace from Erling Haaland ensuring the visitors leave with a point after Eric Dier’s controversial injury-time penalty salvaged a point for the Ligue 1 outfit.

Fresh concerns emerged over a potential further fitness setback for Rodri in Monaco on Wednesday after the Manchester City midfielder was replaced by Gonzalez midway through the second-half – with Guardiola perhaps keeping one eye on this weekend’s tricky Premier League trip to Brentford.

However, speaking after the draw against AS Monaco in a press conference, Guardiola confirmed that Rodri was not substituted due to any injury concerns, which will provide a sigh of relief to Manchester City fans who are keen to see the midfielder back to his best sooner rather than later.