Newcastle United vs Manchester City: Premier League – BBC Sport

Earlier this week, Guardiola described Rodri as irreplaceable.

For all intents and purposes, that's probably true. However, there are other members of the City squad who are hugely important and not all of them attract the attention paid to the man who won the Euro 2024 player of the tournament award when leading Spain to the title led.

Earlier this month, when his side were fortunate to be leading at half-time against a Brentford side that could easily have put the game away, Guardiola turned to two men to steady the ship. One of them was Rodri. The other was Gvardiol. The Croatian defender has not missed a minute of play in either the Premier League or the Champions League since then.

The 22-year-old, signed for £73m last summer, looks more like a centre-back than a full-back. But he has embraced the broader role with enthusiasm. He doesn't have the blistering pace of Kyle Walker, but he isn't afraid to make significant inroads into opposition territory and has a fairly accurate left foot.

When presented with a shooting opportunity by Grealish ten minutes before half-time, Gvardiol fired into the bottom corner with clinical efficiency.

Many will link the fact that it didn't turn out to be a winner with Rodri's absence. That would be simplistic. City couldn't be held because they were poor in midfield. Their overall performance was good. But today the opponent also had a few good players.