Nine Man City positions could be up for grabs vs Arsenal ahead of Leipzig game

Pep Guardiola was angry with Rodri after his foolish red card vs Nottingham Forest, and Manchester City have subsequently gone on to lose both games without the midfielder available over the last week. Rodri will play for City at RB Leipzig as his suspension is only in domestic competitions, before he goes to Madrid on holiday before the international break. However nice that might sound for the Spaniard, Rodri will know he has a point to prove when he returns to the starting XI.

City have travelled to Leipzig in each of the last two seasons, and the first trip saw Kyle Walker sent off with a similar loss of composure to Rodri and he would find it difficult to win his place back after losing Guardiola’s trust. The schedule, and importance of this game, means Rodri will earn a quick return to the starting XI but that doesn’t mean his rush of blood to the head will have been forgotten.

He can start his journey back into Pep Guardiola’s good books with a mature, steady performance against Leipzig. With City having lost twice in a week, he will do his own position no harm by performing well to send a reminder of his quality after two shaky midfield performances. “There’s not too much to debate,” said Ruben Dias. “We all know the influence and the player he is, what he can give to us. His presence is important to all of us.”

Last chance to impress for Arsenal

Kalvin Phillips may have done all he can to earn a starting spot at Arsenal given Rodri will come in for the Champions League. Mateo Kovacic was praised by Guardiola on Tuesday but wasn’t great at Wolves, so if he starts he must show the manager he deserves to play at the Emirates.

With Bernardo Silva back, there will be extra competition for places on the wings – as well as in the centre – so the likes of Jack Grealish, Erling Haaland, Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden may feel at least one of them will have to drop to the bench at Arsenal (although maybe not Haaland). With the squad starting to look a little healthier, that means the return of competition for places, and a spot in the starting lineup for City’s first big test of the Premier League season on Sunday.

Even the emergence of Oscar Bobb – brought on for Matheus Nunes at Wolves at halftime in an attempt to turn things around – complicates matters in the centre. Through a mixture of new signings, a stutter in form, and injuries, City no longer have many undroppables on the team sheet. Almost every position is up for grabs heading towards the Emirates – barring perhaps only striker and goalkeeper.

Angry City must return to winning ways

Dias said that the dressing room was ‘intense’ at Molineux after City’s 100 per cent record came to an end in the Premier League on Saturday. He wouldn’t disclose whether one, two, three, four, five teammates spoke up – or if nobody did – but did back his squad of ‘winners’ and said: “It’s good we feel it that way and hate it that much.”

That hatred must manifest itself into a performance against Leipzig that is much improved from the disjointed one at Wolves. Guardiola was much happier with his side after defeat to Newcastle in the cup with a heavily-rotated team, and will expect a disciplined performance at a ground where the hosts have taken a result in City’s last two visits.

Rodri’s return is a boost, as is the presence of John Stones and Bernardo Silva in the squad – even if they don’t play. The injury list is finally clearing, and City will need their experienced players for their toughest game of the group stage. They have not lost three games in a row in the same season since 2018, when a Manchester derby defeat was sandwiched between the two Champions League quarter-final ties with Liverpool. They lost two at the start of the season in 2021/22 after losing the last game of the previous campaign but will be looking to avoid a repeat of that nightmare run five years ago.

Huge step towards qualification

Pep Guardiola twice went back to continue making his point when speaking about the busy schedule on Tuesday, with the spark of his complaints the expanded Champions League format next year. “I’m a manager but I’m not a trainer,” he said. “I don’t do training with the team. You think we give Mateo [Kovacic] or Jeremy [ Doku] time to understand what we do? Good food needs time to cook. Microwave is not the same.”

Culinary preferences aside, Guardiola’s side are in the midst of six away trips in seven games and have felt the brunt of an injury crisis that is only now starting to ease. Despite that, Guardiola likes to qualify from the Champions League group stage as quickly as possible, easing the burden further when it gets to the winter.

If City make it six points from six in their toughest game of the six on paper, they will be in a strong position to qualify with a doubleheader with Young Boys to come. The boss said the best way to qualify is to win all of your home games and one of your away games. The second part of that can be achieved on Wednesday – albeit against a side who beat them at the Red Bull Arena in 2021 and took a spirited draw last season in the last-16.

Gvardiol returns

When these sides faced each other in February, Josko Gvardiol scored to cancel out Riyad Mahrez’s opener. Fast forward less than eight months and neither scorer are still at their clubs – although Gvardiol will hope to start against his former team. Pep Guardiola was full of praise for how quickly his young Croatian has settled in, with Ruben Dias praising his attitude and personality as well as his clear talent.

If Gvariol does play, he would likely start at left-back – a position he only played in for Leipzig for a month in 2021. He has admitted himself that while he has played at full-back in the past, he prefers to play centrally. Only once has he played there for City – at Newcastle last week – with left-back seemingly his position going forward as he continues to adapt to Guardiola’s system.

So while Gvardiol will return to his old club sooner than perhaps expected, he will be doing so in a new position – and on the other side of a fixture that has seen some big City scorelines. City will hope he is the difference that will assist them in getting a first win at the Red Bull Arena at their third attempt.