Two major updates on the fitness of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City squad have emerged on Wednesday as preparations begin for the next Premier League challenge.
Pep Guardiola and his side continued their fine start to the competitive season by following up their FA Community Shield triumph over Manchester United with an opening weekend victory against Chelsea. The Stamford Bridge affair sparked into life when Erling Haaland opened the scoring after outmuscling Marc Cucurella and lobbing his strike over onrushing goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, giving the reigning Champions the perfect start.
Mateo Kovacic would round off the scoring in the final seven minutes, breezing past Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo to slam home from distance. However, the game would end with some concern over the fitness of new signing Savinho. The 21-year-old was arguably Manchester City’s best player in his 45 minutes on the pitch at Stamford Bridge, before being forced off at the half-time interval with a knee problem, confirmed later by Pep Guardiola.
The Brazilian winger was withdrawn at the half-time interval of City’s 0-2 win over Chelsea on Sunday, with Pep Guardiola later revealing a ‘disturbance’ in his knee was the reason behind his Premier League debut being cut short.
Elsewhere, Manchester City were once again without Spanish midfielder Rodrigo at the City Football Academy, with the 28-year-old seeing his rest post-European Championships extended upon returning to the Premier League champions’ training base. It remains to be seen whether there are plans to reintegrate Rodri into Pep Guardiola’s squad later this week, or whether his ongoing absence is a direct result of the injury that forced an exit from the Euro 2024 Final at half-time against England in Berlin.
Rodri saw his exemplary 2023/24 and calendar year even further boosted on Tuesday night after he joined several other members of the Manchester City squad at the PFA awards, alongside the likes of Pep Guardiola and Txiki Begiristain.
Having been named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year, Rodri, Kyle Walker, and Erling Haaland also witnessed Phil Foden crowned as the new PFA Men’s Players’ Player of the Year at a glistening evening in Manchester city centre.
Foden also returned to action last Sunday having been thrust into action in light of Savinho’s exit, with the feeling within Manchester City that the 24-year-old has the capabilities to return to action at full intensity from the very start of the new season.
In conclusion, Manchester City fans will be hoping for a speedy recovery for Savinho and a swift return to action for Rodri as the team looks to maintain their winning start to the season. With a talented squad and a determined manager in Pep Guardiola, the future looks bright for the Premier League champions.
