There are moments when a football pitch can appear remarkably compact, prompting thoughts about whether, in an era of hyper-fit, hyper-organized athletes, the playing area should be expanded or if fewer players per side might be necessary. Conversely, there are instances when the pitch seems vast, resembling a sprawling patchwork of Rodri-shaped voids.
The absence of Rodri can be strikingly palpable, with everyone keenly aware of his non-presence, making it feel as though every pass in the final third would have been intercepted by Rodri. It might seem at times that he was an immense fire-blanket, simultaneously stifling opposition attacks on both sides of the pitch, though he was not actually omnipresent. Yet, it is equally true that had Rodri been there, Newcastle likely wouldn't have equalized in the manner they did.
The second half was somewhat chaotic; a 30-second period of the ball being wildly kicked in various directions wouldn't have seemed out of place 30 to 40 years ago. Then, unexpectedly, a gap emerged, Joelinton slipped the ball through, and Anthony Gordon ran to knock it wide of Ederson, tumbling over him. This is not the type of goal City typically concede.
Kyle Walker was mysteriously five yards behind the City line, playing Gordon onside, but what was equally significant was the space in front of Manuel Akanji, an area Rodri usually patrols, neutralizing attacks through his mere presence.
A draw away at Newcastle is not a disastrous result for City. However, it is not a win, which not only offers a glimmer of hope to other top-table sides but also extends one of the Premier League's more notable statistics: since City's 6-3 victory over Manchester United in October 2022, the only side they have beaten in a league game without Rodri in the team is Luton.
Since February 2023, there have been only two ways to beat Manchester City: either Rodri was absent, or you had Scott McTominay in your side. It would be absurd to suggest City are dependent on any single player, a notion that contradicts Guardiola's emphasis on team coherence. However, Rodri, through his passing and, more significantly, his positioning, often played a crucial role in maintaining that cohesion.
He is irreplaceable; no player of his caliber could be. As Guardiola noted this week, when players are highly regarded for the Ballon d'Or, it's usually because they offer something unique, something others cannot easily replicate. All City can do is attempt to approximate his impact through a combination of other players.
In that regard, the decision to bring Ilkay Gündogan back from Barcelona just before the transfer window closed appears very foresighted, even if Gündogan, for now, seems less sharp than when he left; some readjustment may be needed, or it could simply be due to his age. But whatever issues City face in covering for Rodri would be far more pronounced without the Germany international. There is, apparently, no prospect of Kalvin Phillips returning from his loan at Ipswich.
On Saturday, Gündogan operated to the left as the most advanced of the three central midfielders, with Mateo Kovacic in the Rodri role at the base and Rico Lewis as the balancing player to the right. All three finished with a pass completion rate over 90%, but not quite as high as Rodri's 93.4% average this season.
It's not just about ball retention, tackles, interceptions, or chance creation. Rodri excels at influencing games in ways that statistics fail to capture, simply by being in the right place, shaping the game around him through his presence alone.
For a few minutes after the equalizer, City were notably disorganized. There was a fleeting moment when Newcastle threatened to overwhelm them. The introduction of Phil Foden for Gündogan, a more incisive presence higher up the pitch, calmed the situation, but the thought remained that such disarray simply cannot occur when Rodri is around, just as untidiness would not happen under Mary Poppins's watch.
Football, at its core, is a chaotic game. Guardiola's grand project is to control it, and with the possible exception of Sergio Busquets, no one has brought order to it quite like Rodri.
The issue of his absence is unlikely to disappear anytime soon.
