Man City’s Rodri injury could actually be dreadful news for Liverpool & Richard Hughes | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Rodri looks set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after appearing to suffer an ACL injury during a 2-2 draw with Arsenal.

The Spanish international is considered likely to be ruled out for the remainder of the 2024/25 campaign in a hammer blow to the Sky Blues’ title-retention hopes.

More concerning for Liverpool, however, is how Pep Guardiola’s side looks to potentially fill the gap in the meantime.

Follow Empire of the Kop on Instagram (@empireofthekop) HERE

Could, for instance, City be tempted to pursue a move for the Reds’ top summer transfer target, Martin Zubimendi?

You could certainly forgive the incumbent champions for having their heads turned by the man who replaced the 28-year-old at the Euros final and excelled against Gareth Southgate’s England.

READ MORE: Fresh Liverpool takeover claim emerges over £693bn mega-rich owners amid Everton agreement

READ MORE: What Fabrizio Romano heard from Liverpool about Zubimendi after reports he regrets staying at Sociedad

Could Manchester City sign Liverpool transfer target Martin Zubimendi?

Martin Zubimendi in action against Real Madrid – (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

World Soccer News (relaying an update from Ekrem Konur) claim that the San Sebastian star is already garnering interest from Real Madrid as an alternative to Rodri.

With that in mind, it would be far from surprising to see Etihad decision-makers come to a similar conclusion in light of Rodri’s long-term injury.

Of course, it’s worth remembering that both outfits will still have to cross the same hurdles Liverpool faced in attempting to shepherd Zubimendi away from the San Sebastian mountains and local food.

Manchester certainly can’t offer more geographic or culinary perks than we can, though a comparatively more local move to the Spanish capital may hold its appeal.

At the very least, we have to hope that our Premier League rivals can’t do a better job in convincing La Real’s prize holding midfielder to depart for England. That would be an extremely bitter pill for Richard Hughes and Co. to swallow.

Keep your eyes peeled ahead of the January transfer window, Reds. We suspect there might be a tug-of-war for the No.4’s services come the winter.

EOTK Close-up with John Welsh: ‘a local lad who lived his dream’ and Slot’s LFC predictions