There was a particularly distinguished passenger on a distinctly unglamorous airline. Rodri was on the Ryanair flight to Liverpool and part of the surprise for some was that, via Merseyside, he was returning to Manchester at all. The subject of bids from Barcelona, Rodri's future may lie in his native Spain rather than at Manchester City.
It is so far unknown if he incurred Ryanair's infamous fines for bringing the World Cup's Golden Ball in hand luggage or whether he stowed it under a seat. Enzo Maresca saw the man who lifted the most prestigious trophy of all briefly and gave him a big hug, he said. They would talk later. City's new manager coached Rodri when his goal clinched the Champions League and thus the treble in 2023. Whether he will ever manage him remains to be seen; minor back surgery would always have ruled Rodri out of Sunday's Community Shield against **** nal.
Man City are open to letting Rodri return to Spain but only if it helps fund his replacement (PA)
But with Barcelona expected to return with a third offer, Maresca may have to contemplate forging an entirely new midfield. His inheritance from Pep Guardiola was an enviable one in many respects, but if he is the continuity candidate, there will be change at the centre of the pitch. Rodri has a year left on his deal but seems to have decided to go. Bernardo Silva left when his contract expired; Guardiola's own departure made it a still more natural endpoint for one of his closest allies. Tijjani Reijnders is heading for the exit, too, off to Al Qadsiah for £51m, and if the Dutchman lost his place as Guardiola preferred an axis of Rodri and Silva, it was nevertheless the case that only six players made more appearances for City last season.
Guardiola famously said that, if he could pick 11 midfielders, he would. There were times when he had a surfeit of options: in 2019-20, for instance, he had not merely Rodri and Bernardo Silva but also David Silva, Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin De Bruyne and Fernandinho.
#silva #Barcelona
It is so far unknown if he incurred Ryanair's infamous fines for bringing the World Cup's Golden Ball in hand luggage or whether he stowed it under a seat. Enzo Maresca saw the man who lifted the most prestigious trophy of all briefly and gave him a big hug, he said. They would talk later. City's new manager coached Rodri when his goal clinched the Champions League and thus the treble in 2023. Whether he will ever manage him remains to be seen; minor back surgery would always have ruled Rodri out of Sunday's Community Shield against **** nal.
Man City are open to letting Rodri return to Spain but only if it helps fund his replacement (PA)
But with Barcelona expected to return with a third offer, Maresca may have to contemplate forging an entirely new midfield. His inheritance from Pep Guardiola was an enviable one in many respects, but if he is the continuity candidate, there will be change at the centre of the pitch. Rodri has a year left on his deal but seems to have decided to go. Bernardo Silva left when his contract expired; Guardiola's own departure made it a still more natural endpoint for one of his closest allies. Tijjani Reijnders is heading for the exit, too, off to Al Qadsiah for £51m, and if the Dutchman lost his place as Guardiola preferred an axis of Rodri and Silva, it was nevertheless the case that only six players made more appearances for City last season.
Guardiola famously said that, if he could pick 11 midfielders, he would. There were times when he had a surfeit of options: in 2019-20, for instance, he had not merely Rodri and Bernardo Silva but also David Silva, Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin De Bruyne and Fernandinho.
#silva #Barcelona
2 months ago
