Manchester City have been one of Europe’s most successful clubs in recent years.
In addition to winning six of the past seven Premier League titles on offer, City have picked up various other domestic trophies and three major European honours.
This showcases the managerial power of Pep Guardiola and the strength and quality of the squad he’s put together.
With the Blues now in the midst of another Premier League title race, someone outside of the Manchester club has made a claim involving one of the key figures in City’s ranks.
- Man City 2024/25 squad cost in full: Transfer fees and stats for every player
Enzo Maresca names Chelsea star who ‘can sit at the table’ with Rodri
Ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League tie against Tottenham Hotspur, Enzo Maresca said this about Moises Caicedo and how he compares to Rodri and Declan Rice.
He said: “Moises Caicedo can sit at the table with Rodri and Declan Rice. He is for sure now at that level. No doubt. Unfortunately, Rodri is injured but Declan is playing. But Moises can be up there.”
Rodri vs Caicedo vs Rice
City signed Rodri back in the 2019 summer transfer window from Atletico Madrid in a deal worth a fee of £62m.
Since then, the midfielder has made 260 appearances for the Citizens across all competitions, scoring 26 goals and delivering 30 assists along the way.
Unfortunately, as Maresca mentioned, Rodri suffered a season-ending injury back in September during City’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium.
With Maresca spending City’s Treble-winning season as Guardiola’s assistant manager, he’ll be very aware of Rodri and what he’s capable of.
He also knows a lot about Cole Palmer, who has scored 34 goals and delivered 21 assists in 61 appearances for Chelsea since he left City to join the West London club back in 2023.
| Premier League 2023/24 | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Tackles Won | Recoveries | Aerial Duels Won |
| Rodri | 34 | 8 | 9 | 43 | 235 | 54 |
| Moises Caicedo | 35 | 1 | 3 | 46 | 200 | 30 |
| Declan Rice | 38 | 7 | 8 | 51 | 178 | 39 |
To highlight how much of an impressive player the Spaniard is, Rodri won the 2024 Ballon d’Or earlier in the season after guiding City to their fourth consecutive Premier League trophy and helping Spain win the European Championship in Germany.
While the Chelsea boss will be no doubt looking to give Caicedo a big confidence boost with his recent comments, there aren’t likely to be any City fans around that agree with Maresca’s opinion that the Ecuador international is on the same level as Rodri.
