Pep Guardiola confirmed Mateo Kovačić and possibly Phil Foden will join Rodri on the sidelines for the start of Manchester City’s 2025–26 Premier League campaign.
The injury woes of last season are still haunting the Cityzens. Rodri, who spent nearly eight months out with an ACL injury, is now looking at more time in the infirmary after suffering a setback at the FIFA Club World Cup.
To make matters worse, Kovačić’s Achilles injury, which prevented him from featuring in the United States this summer, is taking longer to heal than initially anticipated. Guardiola revealed the Croatian might not be back until October, leaving him down two midfielders before the season even kicks off.
The Spanish manager did not stop there, though. Guardiola also confirmed Foden is a doubt for Man City’s league opener against Wolves on Saturday, Aug. 16.
“[Foden] has a problem in his ankle and that’s why we didn’t take a risk with him this week,” Guardiola said. “I don’t know [if he will be fit to play against Wolves]. It was just a knock but it was painful. He will be ready when he is ready.”
The England international stayed back in Manchester while his team travelled to Sicily to play their sole pre-season friendly this summer. Man City secured a comfortable 3–0 win against Palermo even without Foden, Rodri and Kovačić available.
Nico González took the place of Rodri and Kovačić in the No. 6 role, a job he will now have moving forward until the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner returns. The good news is Guardiola is optimistic of Rodri’s recovery timeline.
“Rodri is getting better but he had a big injury in the last game against Al Hilal,” the Man City boss said. “He has trained better in the last few days, hopefully after the [September] international break is when he will be really fit.”
Should Rodri remain on schedule, the 29-year-old will only miss out against Wolves, Tottenham and Brighton for Man City. The recovery for Kovačić appears much longer, with the former Real Madrid man looking at an additional two months on the sidelines.
While Foden remains a doubt for this weekend, he will likely return to the pitch before either of his two injured teammates to help Man City in their quest for Premier League redemption.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man City’s Injury Woes Deepen After Rodri Setback.