Gary Neville has claimed that Rodri has been Manchester City’s most important player.
The midfielder made his first Premier League appearance of the new season last night in City’s 3-0 win over Burnley, which saw him score the Manchester club’s third goal of the night.
This then led to one pundit sharing his thoughts on the Spaniard and what he offers Pep Guardiola’s side.
Neville raves over Rodri
Speaking on Sky Sports after the match at Turf Moor, Neville had this to say about Rodri.
He said: “He’s amazing. Had a really difficult first season but since then in the last 12-18 months, I would say he’s probably Manchester City’s most important player that seems crazy when you talk about De Bruyne and Haaland.
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“He’s doing everything, he’s a threat in attack, he obviously breaks up in defence, he connects through midfield, he’s a leader, he’s unbelievable Rodri the level he’s got to.”
Having played more minutes in the Premier League than any other outfield City player last season across which he racked up a higher combined total of tackles and interceptions at the club (100), this highlights how important he is for the team as Neville said.
In the match at Turf Moor on Friday, the midfielder completed the full 90 minutes and not only scored City’s third goal, but he also provided the assist for Erling Haaland’s opening goal of the game in the fourth minute.
As well as that, Rodri accurately completed 107 of the 110 passes he attempted, leaving him with the highest passing accuracy percentage (97%) in the City team.
The midfielder also showed how effective he can be off the ball as well by making five tackles, more than any of his teammates.
With all of that in mind, it’s easy to see why Neville has been so full of praise for Rodri and why he thinks the Spain international has been one of City’s most important players recently.