NEWCASTLE – No Rodri, no party. But enough questions. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola cannot escape the shadow of his injured midfielder – arguably the best in the world in his position – and his irritated response to the 28-year-old’s question after Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle United has shown how big the loss will be for the Premier League champions.

“Guys, I know you will ask me questions all the time,” Guardiola said after the match. “But (Rodri) is not there. “Kova (Mateo Kovacic), Bernardo (Silva). Rico (Lewis) did well, but I have to find solutions. I would like Rodri to be here.”

This was the first match City played since it was confirmed this week that Rodri, shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or, will miss the remainder of this season after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during the 2-2 draw of last Sunday against Arsenal.

When Rodri left the field in the 20th minute against Mikel Arteta’s side due to his injury, City were 1-0 up and feeling comfortable. In Rodri’s previous 51 Premier League games dating back to February 2023, City had not lost a single one.

But with Rodri off the pitch, Arsenal quickly overturned their deficit to lead 2–1, only missing out on victory by conceding an equalizer in the eighth minute of stoppage time.

At Newcastle, City took the lead again, with defender Josko Gvardiol scoring in the 35th minute after good work from Jack Grealish, but he could not maintain their lead and Anthony Gordon’s penalty in the 58th minute eventually earned Newcastle a point and City asked wondering when they will win again without Rodri.

City will obviously find a way to win without the former Atlético Madrid player. Let’s not forget that Guardiola’s side won their first three league games this season without Rodri in the squad as he was given an extended break following his efforts to help Spain to Euro 2024 glory in Germany.

But the reality of his absence for the remainder of the season has dealt the champion both a selection problem and a psychological blow. Their record with and without Rodri – they have failed to win their last five games (L4, D1) without him and Kevin De Bruyne in the starting XI – points to his importance and the team now know they will have to do a find a way to cope without him. Even Guardiola, a coaching genius, admits he is still looking for a solution.

Rodri is perhaps even more important to City than prolific centre-forward Erling Haaland. City have so many attacking options that they can usually find a way to score when Haaland isn’t on the scoresheet, but Arsenal were able to overwhelm City’s midfield in the period between Rodri’s departure and Leandro Trossard’s red card last week the 45th minute. Newcastle also enjoyed long periods of dominance in the middle of the pitch at St James’ Park.

Guardiola set up a 4-1-2-3 formation with Kovacic in Rodri’s role, while Lewis and Ilkay Gundogan provided an extra layer of protection between Kovacic and the front three.

Kovacic is a top player, winner of the Champions League with Real Madrid and Chelsea, but he is not Rodri. If Rodri is an A+ midfielder, Kovacic might be B+, which is still not bad. But everything about City is the level of excellence and despite Kovacic’s pedigree, he doesn’t give City the security on the ball or the vision of Rodri.

As for Lewis, the 19-year-old is still learning the game and is not yet ready to be one of Guardiola’s main solutions. Gundogan has all the pedigree and he has done it before, but the former Germany international turns 34 next month and looks a shadow of his former self after returning to the Etihad this summer after a season at Barcelona.

Gundogan was substituted early in the second half after a poor performance in which he looked well off the pace. He could improve once his fitness improves, but his age suggests this could be an optimistic suggestion.

Tellingly, Guardiola referred to Bernardo Silva rather than Gundogan when discussing his midfield options against Newcastle, but the Portugal international is more of an attacking player than a potential Rodri solution. Defender John Stones is another, but spent the match on the substitutes’ bench, with the injured De Bruyne failing to make the squad.

Like Gundogan, De Bruyne has all the qualifications to fill Rodri’s void, but he is also 33 and struggles with regular injury problems.

So how does Guardiola replace the irreplaceable?

At Newcastle, City had good spells in the first half but lost control of the midfield as the home side built momentum in the second period.

The midfield of Joelinton, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimarães had more energy and tenacity than City’s, while Joelinton’s height and strength were a problem that Guardiola’s side were unable to deal with in Rodri’s absence.

City now have a comfortable run of league games in October against Fulham, Wolves, Southampton and Bournemouth, so they have the chance to prove to the world, and to themselves, that they can cope without their best midfielder.

The chances are that City will win all four games and do just that, but there is no doubt that they are not the same force without Rodri and the test by fire will be on their title rivals.

Newcastle didn’t do that on Saturday, but they exposed City’s weaknesses and better teams than Eddie Howe’s side will be much more ruthless.