Manchester City defender John Stones has proclaimed that he is ready to fill the void in midfield left by the injured Rodri. The Spain international was recently forced off of the pitch during a contentious matchup with Arsenal. City officials then took their time to reveal the extent of the setback.
Nevertheless, manager Pep Guardiola informed the press on Friday that Rodri suffered a serious ACL injury. As a result, the superstar midfielder will miss the remainder of the 2024/25 season. Rodri only managed to feature in three total matches during the current campaign before the injury.
Rodri is undoubtedly one of the most important players in the entire City team. Erling Haaland rightly gets most of the praise, but the Spaniard is arguably just as crucial to the team’s success. For instance, City has not lost a Premier League match in which Rodri has started since February 2023. On the other side, all three of the club’s English top-flight losses last season came when the midfielder was out with suspension.
Guardiola opted for a midfield pairing of Mateo Kovacic and Rico Lewis in his team’s first Premier League game without Rodri. City ended up drawing with Newcastle on the day. Despite this, Stones was recently asked by reporters if he could help replace the injured superstar in the midfield. “Yeah, if called upon, 100%,” replied the England international.
Although a typical defender, Stones has previously stepped into midfield at times under Guardiola. This was the case in two of last season’s Premier League losses while Rodri was suspended. The manager, however, also opted to select both Stones and Rodri together in the middle of the pitch several other times as well.
“I love it – it’s a different [way of looking] on the game,” Stones said about playing in midfield. “[I have] appreciation for players who have played there, understanding the game, learning from a defender’s point of view, when to receive and pass the ball.”
“I always enjoy it and try every time I go in there. The manager puts us there for a reason, and it’s about going out there and doing a job. It happened a lot over the last two years – me going into midfield. In the [2023] Champions League final, I was a bit higher up [the field] – that was new for me. Something I enjoyed.”
Immediately following the unfortunate news regarding Rodri, Guardiola answered questions about replacing the star. The manager asserted that losing the fellow Spaniard is a massive hole to fill. He also claimed that the club will wait and see what to do in the January transfer market.
For now, Guardiola will go with a combination of Stones, Kovacic, Lewis, and possibly Matheus Nunes in the roles. This means that the quartet will get a chance to impress for the time being. With Stones currently behind Ruben Dias, Manuel Akanji, and Josko Gvardiol in central defense, his best option for playing time could come in midfield.
A stellar display from Stones in the middle of the pitch could end up saving City some serious money. Following the Rodri injury, the club expressed interest in multiple midfielders. This list includes pricey players such as Martin Zubimendi, Nicolo Barella, and Atalanta star Ederson. All three of these players would likely cost any club over $60 million.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.
