Rodri injury: Goretzka, Zubimendi, Wharton, De Jong possible replacements

Pep Guardiola has a problem.

The Manchester City manager says midfielder Rodri is going to be out “for a long time” with the knee ligament damage he suffered in Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal.

How long exactly he will be missing for remains unknown, with City saying further tests are needed for an exact prognosis on his right knee.

But the City boss needs a solution, because Rodri’s influence at the club is immense.

City have lost just 11% of their games with him in the side compared to 24% without him since his debut in 2019.

The solution for the next few months will have to be found internally, with the likes of Mateo Kovacic, Ilkay Gundogan, John Stones and Rico Lewis possible alternatives in the defensive midfield role, but should his absence stretch into 2025, Guardiola could be tempted to look externally come January.

Recalling Kalvin Phillips from a loan spell at Ipswich once the transfer window opens is one option, but who else could Guardiola sign to replace his often-dubbed ‘irreplaceable’ midfielder?

When looking at a number of metrics from last season, data provider Opta found Arsenal’s Declan Rice and Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde were among the midfielders most similar to Rodri from Europe’s top leagues.

But, with these two surely not available, what other options are there?

(The statistics in the graphic below in each of the metrics are averages per match)