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#3 Rodri restores order
Many believed that the Spaniard would be brought in just to be back up/competition for Fernandinho. Instead, Rodri has become a central figure to Pep’s plans this season, making three appearances with two being starts. As we mentioned earlier, Bournemouth had a 10-minute period where they were all over the champions, with City struggling to control the game. Pep responded instantly, by bringing on Rodri for Ilkay Gundogan in the 58th minute. Within minutes of the substitution, City had regained control of the game.
Rodri’s calming presence at the base of City’s midfield slowed the game down and took the sting out of Bournemouth’s attack. Once they regained control, the Sky Blues scored six minutes later. In his 32 minutes on the pitch, the 23-year-old impressively completed 94% of his passes and won 100% of his aerial duels. With this cameo, the holding midfielder reaffirmed his importance to Pep’s style of play.
