1 month ago
16 The gravitas of Rodri’s situation was immediately obvious when the Man City midfielder stayed down after a challenge during the Arsenal game.
A hush descended over the Etihad Stadium, and the fears of club supporters and staff were confirmed in the week after it was confirmed that the Spaniard had suffered an ACL tear and meniscus issues.
?? Pep Guardiola: “Unfortunately Rodri got the worst outcome”.
“He got surgery this morning, ACL and some meniscus. This season is over for Rodri”.
“Next season, he will be here”. pic.twitter.com/10EbPuon9n
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 27, 2024
Clearly, the reigning Premier League champions can’t go the entire 2024/25 season without replacing a player who has become vital to their aspirations.
Given the shadow he casts over City’s midfield, there aren’t too many players that would be able to come in and not be overawed by the task set before them either.
City appear to have quickly identified who they want, and it’s resulted in Pep Guardiola casting an eye towards his old club, Barcelona.
City looking at de Jong to replace Rodri
According to Madrid-Barcelona, Pep wants Frenkie de Jong to fill the huge void Rodri’s absence has created, however, that door was quickly shut in his face.
The outlet also note Hansi Flick offered a firm ‘no’ to the thought of any deal that would take the (currently injured) Dutchman to the North West giants.
Although Football Transfers note that de Jong is open to a move away from Barcelona if the wages he’s owed (approximately €18m) are paid up, that would seem to be in direct opposition to Flick’s own wishes.

 
Unless City want to go down the free transfer route – which is unlikely – then Pep will need to wait until January to bring someone else in, in any event.
By then, de Jong might well have had his head turned to the extent where Barca need to consider the possibilities.
For a club that have appeared to be drowning in debt since the Josep Maria Bartomeu era, a huge cash injection might not be the worst thing in the world given that they could cover de Jong’s loss with the players they already have in situ.
