One of the biggest takeaways from how Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side have started the season is how vulnerable they have looked defensively.
Seven games into the 2024/2025 Premier League campaign, Manchester City have shipped as many as eight goals.
The likes of Newcastle United (seven) and Nottingham Forest (six), who sit in seventh and 11th place respectively have let in fewer goals than the Sky Blues so far this season.
In comparison, Liverpool and Arsenal, who seem to be City’s main rivals for the league title have only conceded two and six goals respectively.
Apart from when they defeated Chelsea 2-0 in their first league game of the season, Pep Guardiola’s men are yet to keep another clean sheet this campaign.
Manchester City have relied on the strength of their attack to ensure that their weaknesses at the back have not costed them crucial results at the start of the campaign.
Guardiola responds to Rodri factor behind Man City struggles
However, the key figures at the Etihad Stadium will be aware that unless they tighten up their defence, they will find it difficult to retain their league crown.
But with Rodri being ruled out of the season due to injury, perhaps such a setback has impacted the side as expected.
- READ MORE: What Man City’s Mateo Kovacic has just said about Rodri despite Fulham brace is very telling
In the £220,000-a-week man’s presence, City are one of the most tough defensive units for any team to break down.
However, the Spaniard’s absence for much of the season due to his unavailability at the start and his subsequent injury has coincided with the Premier League winners being porous at the back.
Mateo Kovacic has deputised in the 28-year-old’s absence in the Premier League while Ilkay Gundogan did so against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League.
But Pep Guardiola feels it would be too easy to put down Manchester City’s defensive woes solely down to Rodri’s unavailability.
Guardiola said via HaytersTV: “I think it’s too easy to say this analysis. With Rodri, we drew two games, without him, we won all the games this season.”
“If it’s one player who makes all the time, a mistake, a mistake, a mistake, next game, he’s not going to play, it’s simple. We have a business, we have to perform well. But it is not the case.”
The Catalan added: “Maybe we have to reflect on the goals, how is it, normally, it’s in transition, in set-pieces, because without Rodri, we lose this power because he’s another guy, he’s so strong in this position.”
“But we have to live without him and see what we can do with the ball. So yeah, we’ll talk, we’ll see, we’ll reflect on what we miss to be more consistent.”
Pep Guardiola makes fair Rodri assessment
It seems like Pep Guardiola feels that the absence of Rodri is not the primary reason why Manchester City have failed to look assured at the back this season.
When it comes to some of the goals that City have let in this campaign, it is hard to disagree with Guardiola’s assessment.
Sammie Szmodics’ goal for Ipswich Town in their 4-1 defeat to Manchester City is an example where the English giants left far too much space in midfield while Rico Lewis failed to track the Irishman’s run.
Similarly, Gabriel Magalhaes’ headed goal in Arsenal’s 2-2 draw against City was another instance where individual shortcomings halted City.
If Kyle Walker was not as touch-tight on the Brazilian, perhaps the Gunners would not have scored from the corner and in such cases, Rodri’s absence perhaps does not correlate with their defensive troubles.
Similarly, Walker also played Anthony Gordon onside as he won the spot-kick for Newcastle United in their 1-1 draw against Manchester City while Kovacic was not close enough to Bruno Guimaraes — who played the initial through ball.
Every team would struggle to replace a player of Rodri’s ilk but simultaneously, some of City’s problems in defence have been solely down to individual errors.
