Guardiola must correct his transfer error to fix midfield

Rodri had got the game off he requested. “Absolutely, he is going to rest on Wednesday as well,” deadpanned Pep Guardiola.

- RICHARD JOLLY

The chances are that Carlo Ancelotti was not fooled. Manchester City, after all, are unbeaten in the last 66 matches in which Rodri has featured. They snapped a four-game losing streak without him in the Premier League by defeating Luton 51 on Saturday.

If nothing else, they have proved they can hammer Luton without the man Guardiola calls the world’s best midfielder: he was also an unused substitute for February’s 6-2 FA Cup thrashing. That was inspired by last season’s defining double act, in Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne.

Saturday was different: a victory with the imprint of the new. Three of last summer’s four main signings – Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku and Josko Gvardiol – scored; the fourth, Matheus Nunes, was denied a goal only by the upright. It was the first time all four had started together; in a small sample size, it was a winning formula. A rampant one, arguably, given that they had 19 shots between them.

So £200m was well spent? A different interpretation will feel feasible when the teamsheets arrive tomorrow. Probably only Gvardiol will start. “He improves a lot,” said Guardiola, and he was not merely referring to the right-foot, long-range shooting that has brought the Croatian two goals in as many games. “An incredible talent,” added his manager. The world’s second-most expensive centre-back is being reinvented as a left-back and a goal threat.