Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola on Monday said he was uncertain when Spain midfielder Rodri would be fit enough to return to action, as the club continues to manage a raft of injury and disciplinary concerns.
Rodri missed much of last season with a knee injury and has appeared just once — for a single minute — in City’s last 10 games because of a lingering hamstring problem. The 29-year-old has been ruled out of Tuesday’s Premier League trip to Fulham and is doubtful for Saturday’s home clash with Sunderland.
“No, not yet,” Guardiola said at a brief Monday press conference when asked if Rodri was available. Asked if he could feature at the weekend, the manager replied: “I don’t know.”
Guardiola also addressed goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma’s accumulating bookings after the Italian was cautioned for a fourth time in his short City career during Saturday’s dramatic 3-2 win over Leeds. Leeds manager Daniel Farke accused Donnarumma of feigning injury to allow Guardiola to deliver a key team talk late in the match — an allegation that added a spicy subplot to the fixture. The booking leaves Donnarumma one yellow card away from a suspension.
“Yes, he has a lot (of bookings), he has many,” Guardiola said. “It is what it is.” When asked whether he had spoken to Donnarumma about the accumulation of cautions, the manager said: “No.”
Guardiola was more forthcoming on the quality of Fulham and their manager Marco Silva ahead of Tuesday’s clash. He praised Fulham’s organisation and improvement with the ball following their 2-1 win away at Tottenham, calling them “really, really tough” opponents at Craven Cottage.
“Marco is many, many years there and always (when we) have been there — really, really tough games, difficult,” Guardiola said. “The organisation is exceptional, and every year I have the feeling that with the ball they are better and better. It’s always so, so difficult for the opponents to break them up.”
The manager also referenced recent fixtures and the tactical challenges posed by Premier League opponents, noting the consistency required to sustain domestic and European ambitions amid injuries and disciplinary issues.