Manchester City are entering a moment that feels heavy, emotional, and tense. The blue side of Manchester is normally full of confidence, calmness and power, but right now the air around Etihad Stadium is different. The fans can feel the pressure. The players can feel the pressure. Pep Guardiola can feel it more than anybody. He knows that the Premier League does not wait for any team, even a team as great as Manchester City. Two defeats in a row in all competitions have changed the mood completely. Once City were marching like a team on a mission to chase Arsenal, but now they are chasing momentum, confidence, rhythm, and belief again. Today against Leeds is not just another match in the Premier League. It is a game that already feels like a must win. Anything other than three points is dangerous. Anything other than victory could send shockwaves into the fanbase and maybe even the title race.
Last weekend was supposed to be a moment to close the gap. City were meant to take advantage when the opportunity came, but things went in the opposite direction. A trip to Newcastle that many expected to be difficult still became a huge disappointment. Instead of cutting Arsenal’s lead at the top of the table to just one point, Manchester City slipped. They lost the match and slipped to third position in the Premier League table. Seven points behind Arsenal now. Seven points can be overcome, but only if the team behaves like champions again. Arsenal look strong after sweeping aside Tottenham. Their players look hungry. Their fans believe. And Guardiola knows that if City continue to drop points, the title race might run away from them before January even arrives.
As if the Premier League defeat was not enough, the Champions League brought another moment of pain in midweek. A shock loss at the hands of Bayer Leverkusen. Guardiola named a different starting XI, making ten changes, resting key stars and giving opportunities to squad players. He expected a reaction and a performance. Instead, it was another defeat, and it left the whole fanbase wondering what is going wrong. No matter the rotation, no matter the team selection, Manchester City fans are used to seeing their club win. That shock defeat made the match against Leeds even more meaningful. There is no choice today. They must bounce back. They must show the hunger again. They must play like the Manchester City that the world respects and fears.
But football has a way of creating problems at the exact moment a team needs their strongest lineup. Today Manchester City will step onto the pitch without one of the most important players in their entire squad. A player who has become the heartbeat of the team over the last two seasons. Rodri. When this man is missing, Manchester City are not the same. The midfield loses balance, stability and confidence. Other players try to step in, but the rhythm is not the same. Everyone knows it. Other teams know it. And Guardiola definitely knows it. That is why the anxiety in the fanbase is rising again. Rodri is out. Not available. Not fit enough to play again.
His injury is a hamstring issue, the kind of injury that needs patience and careful treatment, not pressure or rushing. After his brief comeback against Bournemouth earlier this month, the hope was that he was finally back to stay. City fans celebrated his return. They believed things would return to normal again. But instead of being fully fit, Rodri found himself back on the sidelines. Every week that passes makes the concern grow and grow. Manchester City have enough talent to compete with anyone in Europe, but Rodri is the type of player who is impossible to replace. The team looks different without him. The fans know it. The media knows it. Even opponents know it.
Pep Guardiola faced the press on Friday, and as always, the question everybody was waiting for came early. “Will Rodri play this weekend?” Everybody already feared the answer. Guardiola confirmed he will miss the game. There was no hiding. No surprises. No miracles. Rodri remains unavailable. But the worry did not stop with that confirmation. The next question came immediately, and it came with anxiety. How long until Rodri returns? Guardiola answered in a very short and mysterious way. He said, “Not far.” That could mean one week. It could mean two. It could mean more. Fans have heard that phrase before. Injuries do not always follow a fixed timeline. And with the number of matches coming thick and fast, every missing game feels bigger than the previous one.
Missing today means it is extremely difficult to imagine Rodri returning in time for the match away to Fulham, only three days later. Physically, it looks impossible. Guardiola will not risk him. City will have to battle without their midfield general again, and everybody knows the Premier League is not easy when you go into games without your most influential player. With the timeline slowly becoming clearer, the most realistic expectation now is the home match against Sunderland next week. That looks like the first hope of seeing Rodri back on the grass at Etihad again. That date is now in every City fan’s imagination. They are waiting, hoping, and praying nothing goes wrong from now until then.
But the match against Leeds cannot wait. The Premier League schedule will not pause for Manchester City to recover. Today is the type of match where champions rise. The type of match where leaders grow. The type of match where players have to prove that the team is not over-dependent on one man. This is the moment where the dressing room needs fire. Every player who wears that sky blue shirt today must step up and fight. Leeds will arrive with no fear. They have nothing to lose. They know City are wounded. They know City are under pressure. They will try to frustrate, disrupt and punish. And if City drop points again, the Premier League table could become even more painful reading.
Guardiola will make wholesale changes again for the Leeds game. His lineup will look different from the midweek Champions League experiment. His big stars will return to the starting XI. But the one absence everybody will feel is Rodri. He will not walk out of the tunnel. He will not dictate the midfield. He will not calm the game with one touch. And this is where the focus falls on the other midfielders. Mateo Kovacic must step up. Kalvin Phillips, if selected, must seize the moment of his career. Bernardo Silva must play with authority. The defence must protect their space. The attackers must punish every small mistake. If City dominate without scoring, it will only bring anxiety. They must be clinical. They must send a message.
The fans are ready to sing. But they are also ready to demand more from the players. At the Etihad today, nobody will be satisfied with a narrow win or a lucky escape. The supporters want a reaction. They want passion. They want intensity. They want Manchester City to remind the whole Premier League that they are still the champions. They want Arsenal to hear the roar from Manchester. They want critics to stay silent again.
Sometimes football brings a crisis. And sometimes football brings an opportunity inside the crisis. Today is one of those days. Without Rodri, without momentum, without comfort, Manchester City must fight. They must rediscover who they are. Pep Guardiola must bring the emotion. The dressing room must find the fire. The badge on the shirt must mean something today. The Premier League title will not be won today, but it could be damaged today if the focus slips again. The task is simple and difficult at the same time. Win. Bounce back. Remind everybody who they are.
Every fan walking into the stadium today knows what is at stake. The feeling is not fear. It is expectation. Manchester City, the team that created a dynasty under Guardiola, must react like champions. Every big football story has a turning point. Today could be the turning point of Manchester City’s season. They have suffered two painful defeats. They have injuries. They have pressure. They have questions to answer. But champions become champions in moments like this.
And when the fans think about the moment Rodri finally returns, most of them are imagining a different atmosphere. A winning team again. A confident team again. A strong team again. They hope that when Sunderland come to the Etihad next weekend, Rodri will join a squad already back on track and ready to fight for every trophy again. For now, the message before kickoff is simple. No excuses. No hiding. No fear. Manchester City must deliver
