From Ballon d'Or to broken: What next for Rodri? Man City's injury-plagued midfielder facing fight to resurrect his career

Many great players have never been the same again after suffering ACL injuries. Radamel Falcao, for example, was a shadow of the player he once was after injuring his knee for Monaco in 2014, as he missed the World Cup with Colombia before then bombing with Manchester United and Chelsea, though he did stage a slight resurgence once back at Monaco. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, meanwhile, missed a combined three seasons due to knee issues and finally was forced to retire aged 34.

There are also plenty of good news stories, of players who overcame long spells out on the sidelines to get back to their former heights or be even better. Ruud van Nistelrooy's move to Manchester United from PSV in 2000 was derailed by an ACL injury. but one year later he got back to full fitness and became one of the most prolific strikers to ever grace Old Trafford. Ronaldo tore his ACL in 1999 and then, in his comeback game, ruptured tendons in his kneecap; less than two years later he fired Brazil to glory at the 2002 World Cup and then earned a move to Real Madrid. Roy Keane missed most of the 1997-98 season due to ACL tear but then led United to the treble in 1999, while in 2000 he scooped the PFA Player of the Year award.

More recently, Eder Militao has torn the ACL in each of his knees within the past two years but has returned to being a regular for Real Madrid and Brazil, while his club team-mate Dani Carvajal is also back for Madrid after suffering a triple knee injury last year.

Rodri, though, suffered one of the worst case scenarios when it comes to knee injuries. There are two menisci in each knee, the medial (inside) and lateral (outside), while the ACL connects them. Although the ACL is one of the main ligaments in the knee, the menisci are as important as they absorb shock between the shin and thigh bones, helping stabilise the knee and protect it from wear and tear. 

While between 50 and 70 per cent of people who tear their ACL also damage one of their meniscus as well, only around a third of people tear all three. Rodri was one of the unlucky ones, suffering what is known in medical circles as 'the terrible triad'. ACL surgeon Gordon Mackay told The Athletic that tearing the outer cartilage means "a more challenging recovery, more challenging surgery, and a less predictable outcome". 

Rodri was treated by Dr Manuel Leyes, who runs the Olympia clinic in Madrid that operated on Carvajal, Luis Suarez, Sergio Ramos and Zinedine Zidane, among other notable athletes from the NFL and the NBA. Leyes told The Athletic that "Rodri has a good head on his shoulders and is surrounded by a team that advises him very well," but he and manager Pep Guardiola appear to have disagreed on the timescale of his recovery.

As far back as January, Guardiola warned of the danger of Rodri returning too soon. “He's positive but I don't know to be honest. An ACL is an ACL. Always I believe in long injuries there's a time you must respect because of the human body. The most important thing for Rodri now is to recover well. You're not a teenager anymore but still you have years to play. And it's going to happen if you recover well. If you can get back for one week, one month and [take a] step back for next season it's not intelligent."

Guardiola had said shortly after Rodri underwent surgery that he could be out for between nine and 12 months, and yet he returned to the pitch just under eight months after he suffered the injury against Arsenal, playing 10 minutes in the penultimate game of City's Premier League campaign against Bournemouth. But the big mistake, with hindsight, seems to have been taking Rodri to the Club World Cup.

In the United States, Guardiola again repeated his message of being careful with Rodri and only introduced him for the final half-hour against Wydad Casablanca and Al Ain. He then started Rodri against Juventus, giving him just over an hour, but returned him to the bench for the last-16 clash with Al-Hilal. Guardiola brought his star midfielder on in the second half as his team were trailing 2-1, but was then forced to take Rodri off again in extra-time due to a groin problem. Months later, Guardiola admitted it was "a big injury" and explained that Rodri would not start the season.

"Hopefully after the international break, he will be really fit," he said. "Hopefully in these games, he can play some minutes, but what is important is that he doesn't have pain because we don't want Rodri coming back injured. We will try desperately to avoid that."

Rodri got 15 minutes against Tottenham and played 90 minutes against Brighton, the first time he had completed a match in 11 months, to open the campaign, and Guardiola's wish seemed to have come true as Rodri started against Manchester United, Napoli and Arsenal in the space of seven days, playing a combined 226 minutes of a a potential 270. 

But one week later, he was left out of the squad against Burnley, with Guardiola making the concerning revelation that during training in the build-up to the game, Rodri had told him: "I'm not able to play. I have a lot of pain in my knee." 

A few days later, Guardiola warned that Rodri could not cope with City's usual schedule. "He is not injured, but in the tendon he has a difficulty," Guardiola said before City played Monaco. "The week before was so demanding with [Manchester] United, Napoli and especially Arsenal, and right now he's not able to play three games in a week at a top, top, top level – top intensity, demanding opponents. My feeling right now is he is not ready because he needs time. This type of injury, it is minimum one year and after that you start. Be patient and he dictates. If he feels not good, it's better to rest."

And yet, despite this warning, Rodri started against Monaco, though was taken off after an hour due to an injury scare. He subsequently started against Brentford less than four days later, but only lasted 22 minutes before coming off with a hamstring injury.

Rodri told Sky Sports that the injury was not a big one, but it led to him pulling out of Spain's World Cup qualifiers and Guardiola has been unable to give a timescale on his return. The City coach confirmed on Monday that Rodri would miss this week's games against Villarreal and Aston Villa after not playing against Everton on Saturday, and there was a heavy tinge of regret: "It's not long, but it's muscular and you have to be careful. We've tried so many times, we've tried to not take a risk, but we have not been able to (manage) that."

Rodri's niggling injuries present more of a problem to City than they would any other player - with the possible exception of Erling Haaland - precisely because the Spaniard's durability used to be his unique selling point. City did not lose any games in all competitions with their midfield lynchpin in the starting line-up for 15 months. The defeat at Brighton in August was the first time they had lost a Premier League game he had started since February 2023.

And City will need to think very carefully about what to do next with a player whose full fitness is no longer a guarantee. Rodri is heading into the final 18 months of his contract with City, and it has been reported that he was going to be offered an improved new deal that would take him into the same salary bracket as Haaland. 

Such a pay rise was deemed necessary as Real Madrid's interest in Rodri was well known, and the Spanish giants have a habit of convincing players near the end of their contracts to resist renewals in order to move to Santiago Bernabeu, working most recently with David Alaba, Kylian Mbappe and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Madrid have previously targeted Ballon d'Or winners such as Fabio Cannavaro, Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo, and Rodri is extra attractive to them as a European Championship winner with Spain. Los Blancos do not have a holding midfielder of Rodri's calibre, and in the words of a Marca report in August: "Real Madrid want him, and it's no secret. They wanted him before, they want him now and they will want him tomorrow."

And yet signing even a fully fit Rodri for free would break the mould with Madrid's recent transfer policy. He will be 31 by the time his contract with City expires and would likely want a long deal and a sign-on bonus which is customary when players join as free agents. The fact that there are now so many doubts about his fitness make that dream move to the Bernabeu less likely.

In little more than a year, Rodri has gone from winning the Ballon d'Or to looking like his career is on the way down. As much as City want him to return as soon as possible, it might be in everyone's interest for him to take it easy and focus on being pain free before playing his next game.