Man City’s Rodri suffers knee ligament injury

Manchester City’s Spanish midfielder Rodri has suffered a ligament injury in his right knee and will be consulting a specialist in Spain to gauge the full extent of its severity, the Premier League club said on Wednesday.

The 28-year-old Spain international limped off the pitch in the first half of City’s 2-2 Premier League draw with Arsenal on Sunday.

Following City’s League Cup win over Watford on Tuesday, coach Pep Guardiola said the midfielder will be out for a “long time”.

“Manchester City can confirm that Rodri has suffered a ligament injury to his right knee,” City said in a statement.

“The midfielder travelled to Spain to seek specialist consultation this week, following initial tests in Manchester. Assessment remains ongoing to ascertain the full extent of the injury and expected prognosis.

“Everyone at the club wishes him a speedy recovery.”

Rodri, named the best player at this year’s European Championship, which he won with Spain, has been key to Guardiola’s success at the helm of the Premier League champions.

Since joining from Atletico Madrid in 2019, Rodri has played 174 Premier League games for the club and has finished on the losing side only 19 times in that period, with 129 wins.

His absence will be a blow to City, who are looking to win a fifth straight Premier League title this season and are top of the standings with 13 points from five games.