Manchester City was left stunned in their latest outing in the Premier League as the side suffered a shocking defeat away from home. Pep Guardiola and his men were hoping to bounce back from the draw against Tottenham but were handed an enormous loss at the hands of Aston Villa. With the defeat, the side is now six points behind Arsenal, who is at the top of the table with thirty-six points. During his recent outing on ESPN, a prominent analyst claimed that Rodri’s absence in the midfield cost Manchester City the game.

The Cityzens were without the services of Rodri during their visit to Villa Park. The player picked up his fifth yellow card of the season during the game against Tottenham, resulting in a one-game suspension. Rodri’s absence has been a massive blow for City throughout this season as the side’s all three Premier League defeats have come in the Spaniard’s absence.

Jules Laurens claims Rodri’s absence cost Manchester City

Italian analyst Jules Laurens was present alongside his regular partner-in-crime Gab Marcotti on ESPN’s ‘The Gab & Juls Show’. During the show, the duo commented on Manchester City’s defeat at the hands of Aston Villa. Jules claimed the Cityzens were just not prepared for Villa in the absence of Rodri.

Laurens stated, “They destroyed them. In a game where the midfield really won the game. I think okay Rodri is out for City and we know what happens when Rodri is out for City. They usually lose unless they play Young Boys, which is the only team they beat this season without Rodri. They lost against Arsenal, Newcastle, Wolves and Villa.”

There is some solid weight behind the analyst’s statement. Manchester City struggled to cope with Aston Villa’s constant domination in the midfield.

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John Stones, who made his return to the side following his injury, was just not well prepared for the threat posed by Youri Tielemans, Douglas Luis, and Boubacar Kamara as Villa dominated Manchester City in the midfield.

Pep Guardiola confident of Manchester City despite early setbacks

Despite the defeat, Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola, believes this is a small roadblock for his side. The Spaniard is confident that the Cityzens will bounce back and win the Premier League title this season.

Guardiola stated, “My feeling today is that we are going to win the Premier League. If we play the levels like we did against Liverpool and Tottenham, we are going to win it again.”

Do you think Manchester City can bounce back from their string of poor outings and climb to the top of the Premier League standings? Let us know in the comments below.

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