Manchester City took a further step towards a fifth Premier League title yesterday with a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The Citizens capped off a great week that began with a 2-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Guardiola rang the changes for yesterday’s clash, with the likes of Raheem Sterling, Aymeric Laporte and Sergio Aguero all coming into the side.
Interestingly there was no rest for Rodri, who lined up in central midfield along with Fernandinho.
It was the Spaniard’s 49th appearance of the season for City, and most of those have been as a starter.
It was a little surprising to see him starting against the Eagles – perhaps Oleksandr Zinchenko might have been handed a midfield adventure having only played for half an hour on Wednesday.
But Guardiola clearly rates Rodri extremely highly and wanted him in there.
One wonders if this is because Guardiola himself was a defensive midfielder and understands the importance of having quality in that position.
Guardiola might have found new Sergio Busquets
When Guardiola managed Barcelona, Sergio Busquets played practically every game for the Catalan giants.
He became a world-class sensation, whom Guardiola once branded ‘the best player in the world’ (via Goal).
It looks like Guardiola could be looking to birth a new version of Busquets in Rodri.
He’s been at the Etihad Stadium less than two years and has already chalked up over 100 appearances across all competitions for the club.
It really would be no surprise to see the 24-year-old take a very similar path to Busquets.
This season Rodri has been fantastic, and if he turns out half as good as his fellow Spaniard then City have a real talent on their hands.
