ONE MAN CITY

MANCHESTER CITY’S recent collapse has coincided with the absence of their key talisman.

But just what do the stats say about the importance of Rodri?

The Spanish midfielder, 28, was agonisingly ruled out for the season after injuring his ACL against Arsenal in September.

The damage required surgery and the lengthy recovery will keep him out of action until the 2025-26 campaign.

And that means he will have to relinquish the Ballon d’Or trophy he collected in Paris last month as he was crowned the best footballer on the planet thanks to his exploits for City and Spain.

Asked about being the world’s best footballer, Madrid-born Rodri told Esquire: “It’s hard to explain and when you put it in those words, it’s even more astonishing, it’s scary. I never thought about it.

“Life surprises you and it’s an example that dreams can come true.

“Never looking beyond, but living day by day, trying to grow… in the end you realise that a boy like me, from a normal neighbourhood, can become the best in the world.”

The midfield metronome’s spell on the sidelines is being felt harder than even the most devout Rodri fans and Pep Guardiola could have expected.

City limped to a 1-1 draw with Newcastle and — after unconvincing one-goal wins against the likes of Fulham, Wolves and Southampton — have lost their last five matches in all competitions. The nightmare run started at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Carabao Cup before Bournemouth secured a 2-1 win on the south coast.

Ruben Amorim’s Sporting stuffed City 4-1 in the Champions League and then Brighton won 2-1 at the Amex.

Then on Saturday, Spurs thumped Guardiola’s men 4-0 in a jaw-dropping result.

And that result added further clout to the reliance on Rodri’s role in the team.

This season, Rodri has featured in just three matches — coming on at half-time in the 2-1 win over Brentford, the 0-0 draw with Inter Milan and then went off after 21 minutes after sustaining the horror knee injury against Arsenal.

It means he has missed 16 of City’s matches this season — and they have won nine, drawn two and lost five of those at a win rate of 56 per cent.

But looking back to the start of the 2022-23 Treble-winning season, when the Rodri Rolls-Royce truly started rolling at new levels, the stats laid bare make for astonishing reading.

From February 12, 2023 to May 19, 2024, Rodri was unbeaten for Manchester City — a staggering 74-match streak that was finally ended by rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final at Wembley. —Sun.