New Rodri return date and FA Cup ball complaints – Every Word from part two of Pep Guardiola’s Plymouth Argyle review press conference | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has now been able to provide a new update on a potential return to action for defensive midfield star, Rodri.

The latest comments from the 54-year-old coach come after his side progressed into the quarter-final stage of this season’s FA Cup, with a clash against Premier League outfit AFC Bournemouth awaiting in the last-eight.

The clash on the south coast at the end of March comes as a reward for the fifth round comeback win over Plymouth Argyle at the Etihad Stadium, in large part thanks to a headed brace from academy graduate Nico O’Reilly.

One dampener on the contest was yet another injury sustained by Nathan Ake, whose difficult campaign on a personal fitness front was further hampered in the first-half, forcing him off the field during the half-time interval.

That development came just 24 hours after Rodri had returned to individual training on the ball at the City Football Academy, sparking wild scenes of excitement among Manchester City’s global fanbase on social media.

Following the release of part two of Pep Guardiola’s Plymouth Argyle review press conference from Saturday night, here is every single word from the Manchester City manager on numerous talking points!

On whether Manchester City have seen a lot of difference with the movement of the FA Cup’s match ball

“There is one action from Phil (Foden); Phil made a (shot) with his left foot to the far post, and the ball normally with the way they shoot makes (a movement) inside, and that ball goes away. So it’s difficult to control it. Many years and many managers and players said about that.

“When you lose, and say that, it’s ‘He’s complaining’, you know that, but the ball is not proper. I’m sorry. For many, many years it happened in the FA Cup or Carabao Cup. I know it’s a business, they arrive in agreement to do that, but the ball is not good.”

“Do you know how many shots go over the post? All of them. Not just Erling (Haaland), look at the other games! You have to be so precise, and the ball sometimes does what he wants.”

On whether he or Manchester City have asked for the FA Cup ball to be changed

“I said for many years, but listen; I would like to play Champions League on Wednesday when you’re playing on Saturday or you’re playing on Sunday. There are things that are out of our control.

“I said my opinion, if the people like it, it’s fine, not fine, people will be nice to me because we won 3-1. If I would’ve lost, I would think the same. I would not say it, because I don’t want to be punished, but that is the truth.

“The Champions League ball is exceptional, the Premier League ball is exceptional, but this one is not good.”

On Rodri’s individual training footage and the excitement from Manchester City fans on social media

“The fans must know that they are not the only ones who are excited. They have to know it. It’s five months and a half, six months (out) after the international break. But it’s one step at a time.

“We don’t have to make stupid decisions to come back weeks earlier and (sustain) set backs. But yeah, it looks good. Still he’s not close to coming back, I would say. But he’s touching the ball today (on Saturday) and was in the locker room making touches with the players, he feels confident, he feels more happy.

“I could not expect before, but I think maybe before the end of the season, not even in the (Club) World Cup, in the Premier League, maybe he’s going to help us.”

On whether Rodri would have a chance of featuring at Wembley if Manchester City made it to that stage of the FA Cup

“I don’t know. Quarter-finals we’ll see. We have to deserve to be in Wembley for the semi-finals first.”

On how he is going to manage the rest of the season for Manchester City’s players with more rest in midweeks

“Yeah, it’s quite new for us. I would say in nine years it’s never happened. That means that we are not doing well, but yes, we are going to take this time off to refresh, because always I believe in this competition – people don’t believe it – but it’s about quality, not quantity.

“And to refresh and we are going to make four good training sessions to prepare our important, really, really important game against (Nottingham) Forest. And again, a long week before Brighton, after it’s an international break and after FA Cup (quarter-final).

“And the last part of the… yeah, we’re going to refresh things, practice things, and lift the rhythm, like normally when you cannot train because we play every three or four days, you cannot increase that. And refresh things that we cannot do that we have to do better.”

On Nathan Ake being a long time out

“No, so tomorrow we’ll do the test, but yeah, he struggles sometimes with the feet, with the bone. And apparently, you know… Yeah, it’s all season it’s been like that.

“Unfortunately the central defenders, they cannot be (consistently injury-free), hopefully the young ones – they don’t have a lot of scars in their lives – can sustain and help us until the end.”