...but he certainly is in need of a rest
PEP Guardiola will be hoping Rodri and Bernardo Silva can make it through one more Premier League match before earning a rest.
The City manager already knew he would be without Ferran Torres, Kevin de Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte for the midweek trip to Aston Villa and the club doctors ruled out John Stones, Kyle Walker and Ilkay Gundogan in the 24 hours before kick-off.
While the injuries to those three were not deemed serious, they were enough to keep them out of the matchday squad.
With Jack Grealish and Phil Foden only fit enough to be on the bench at Villa Park as they returned from injury, the Blues boss did not have the luxury of making wholesale changes to his team from the win over West Ham and rest some players.
And while the team pulled together to claim an excellent 2-1 win, the coach admitted afterwards Rodri and Bernardo have played too many minutes recently.
The pair have started all four City matches since the international break, and Guardiola’s reliance on them this season goes much further back. They both started six out of seven games after the October international break too. Joao Cancelo is the only outfield player to have spent more time on the pitch than the two midfielders.
RB Leipzig next week is the obvious time to let both put their feet up. That fixture has been marked in the calendar as a prime opportunity for rotation since at least the victory over PSG that confirmed top spot in the Champions League group, and Guardiola has already spoken about the game as an opportunity to give minutes to youngsters and other players who need rhythm.
Tomorrow’s opponents Watford, in contrast, are another club like Villa with dangerous players that are still enjoying the bounce of a new manager. They have averaged nearly two goals a game under Claudio Ranieri and, however bad their opponents were on the day, they took
United apart at Vicarage Road and also pushed Chelsea close. City have momentum in the title race and will not want to throw it away this weekend.
The best scenario for the Blues is that Bernardo and Rodri can both be passed fit and make it through the Watford game before then having a week to recuperate and recover their best fitness for the home match against Wolves. That would allow Grealish, Foden, and De Bruyne a few more days to be ready to start in the European tie and improving their condition for when Premier League action returns. Guardiola will hope he doesn’t have any visits from the club medical staff over the next day.