Pep Guardiola has attributed Manchester City’s faltering title defense to the team’s injury problems and, in particular, Rodri’s absence, asking “how many NBA titles have the Chicago Bulls won without Michael Jordan?”.
Spain midfielder Rodry is unlikely to play again this season after rupturing his ACL against Arsenal in September – a setback which has deprived City of arguably their most influential player and the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner.
Since then, a number of other players have missed time with various ailments, contributing to City’s miserable run which has seen them win just one of their last 10 games in all competitions.
“That’s the problem. Rodri and I knew it from the beginning. This season we are playing without the Ballon d’Or winner and the best player in England last season,” Guardiola said.
“Of course it’s difficult. The Chicago Bulls won six NBA titles with Michael Jordan, right? Since Jordan retired, how much have they earned?
“Once we (the players) come back, we’ll be strong again.”
Derby day is approaching 👊
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— Manchester City (@ManCity) December 12, 2024
Too many games – Guardiola
Guardiola has long been a critic of the hectic schedule delivered at Europe’s top clubs and reiterated his belief that too many games are being played.
“We have more games than ever on this calendar,” he said. “The number of injuries we had today made me think you need a squad of 25-30 players.
“It will be more difficult financially for the club.
“In the summer, we will play the Club World Cup for three weeks and then the Premier League will start again.
“Maybe then we should have more depth in our squad. When people say, “what’s the problem?” The problem is the program.
“It’s not the players, it’s not the fitness, it’s not the training, it’s not how they eat or how they rest. It’s the program.
“Sooner or later it will happen to all clubs. This is the truth.”
City are struggling for defenders to face United
Injuries show no sign of easing ahead of Sunday’s Manchester derby, particularly in defensive areas.
Manuel Akanji is injured, as are John Stones and Nathan Ake, while Rico Lewis is suspended.
It leaves Guardiola with possibly just three fit, senior defenders – Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol – and a problem to solve.
He said: “I need players. We have three, so let’s see what happens today and tomorrow. We should think about it.
“Maybe a winger has to play as a full-back or we play with five backs where the full-backs are full-backs. I don’t know. I’m thinking about what to do with our situation.”
Record revenue doesn’t mean a huge transfer kitty
City today announced record revenues of £715m for the year ending June 30, but Guardiola insisted that does not necessarily mean he will be given the go-ahead to dive into the January transfer market.
“What I want is for my players to come back – the players we have,” he said. “I want the team we had at the start of the season which was desperately competitive.
“I’ve said many times, that’s the only regret I have, (that) I don’t have these players – not young ones.
“When the time is right, we’ll see. The fact that we have record revenues, for which I have to congratulate the club, that does not mean that we have big, big resources to buy everything we want.”
City head into the weekend in fourth place in the Premier League, eight points behind leaders Liverpool with the Merseysiders also having a game in hand.
