Manchester City will “try to find the new Rodri” after the Spain captain left the club earlier this week to join La Liga champions Barcelona, says manager Enzo Maresca.
Rodri became one of the best midfielders in the world during his seven seasons at the Etihad Stadium, winning the 2024 Ballon d’Or award as well as four Premier League titles and scoring the only goal in the 2023 Champions League final.
The 30-year-old led his country to a World Cup triumph during the summer and has signed a four-year contract at the Nou Camp after Barca agreed to pay a fee in the region of £65m.
“How do we solve that problem?” asked Maresca. “We try to find the new Rodri, it is what it is.
“[Before] Rodri arrived here, he didn’t win the Ballon d’Or, he didn’t win the Champions League, he didn’t win the Club World Cup. He joined the club then he achieved many important things.”
Rodri played nearly 300 games for City. He was in the final 12 months of his contract and although the Premier League side offered him an extension, talks did not yield a result.
Maresca added: “I was thinking on Thursday night, when David Silva was here, everyone was worried and Kevin [De Bruyne] arrived. When Sergio [Aguero] was here, everyone was worried [when he was going to leave] and Erling [Haaland] arrived. Fernandinho? Rodri arrived.
“When they leave, you need to be good in recruiting the next one. They are all similar, David, Kevin, Fernandinho, Rodri, Erling – there is one more – it is normal, it is change, it is not a problem, go again and try to do the right things.”