Rodri set for Manchester City return against Bournemouth | OneFootball

Manchester City are lining up a return to the matchday squad for long-term absentee Rodri against Bournemouth on Tuesday night, according to reports in Spain.

The 28-year-old has been sidelined for the former Premier League champions since the end of September, when he was withdrawn from action in the first-half of a 2-2 draw with Arsenal in the top-flight owing to a serious double knee injury.

Having undertaken surgery on anterior cruciate ligament damage, Rodri was ruled out of action for the majority of the season, if not the entirety of the campaign, despite the player himself insisting that he did not feel as though his 2024/25 calendar was over.

Returning to full first-team training with the Manchester City squad at the end of April, following a number of weeks of individual work at the City Football Academy, Pep Guardiola revealed that the Spain international was making significant progress.

Quizzed on whether any recently returning names could make appearances in the matchday squad or on the pitch against Bournemouth in the Premier League this week, the Manchester City manager told a recent news conference, “We’ll see.

“Some players are better. Rodri is even better day by day, we’ll see,” he added, at a time when the fitness of Mateo Kovacic has remained unknown following his absence against Crystal Palace in Saturday afternoon’s FA Cup Final.

And despite the lack of commitment to a firm answer from Guardiola over Rodri’s availability in a crunch clash when it comes to the club’s UEFA Champions League hopes, fresh reports from Spain have offered some exciting news for City supporters.

According to the information of AS’ Aritz Gabilondo, Rodri will be included in Manchester City’s matchday squad list for Tuesday night’s all-important Premier League match against Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium.

It is explained that while Pep Guardiola is due to include the Ballon d’Or winner in his squad for the first time since September owing to a long-term knee injury, the midfielder is unlikely to start but could see some on-field minutes from the substitute’s bench during the game.

Rodri was just one of many Manchester City injury problems to have largely derailed their season, albeit arguably the most impactful given the role the midfielder plays in Pep Guardiola’s overall tactical operation.

The former Atletico Madrid operator was joined by Oscar Bobb on the early long-term recovery table, after the Norwegian forward suffered a leg bone break during a training session prior to the first game of the Premier League season.

Problems throughout the entire defence only made things worse for City, forcing the club to take drastic action during the January transfer window and spend almost £200 million on four new arrivals in three different positions.

Rodri’s return will bring about plenty of hope that the Ballon d’Or winner can play a crucial role for Manchester City at this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, which begins towards the end of June with three group stages matches against Juventus, Wydad AC, and Al Ain.