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Brentford vs. Man City: Rodri's injury woes continue with early exit

Rodri's injury nightmares continued on Sunday as the midfielder was substituted in the 21st minute of Manchester City's Premier League win away at Brentford.

The 29-year-old sat down in the centre circle holding his hamstring and eventually limped off to be replaced by Nico González.

"I felt a little bit in the hamstring - but it seems as though it's not that much," Rodri told Sky Sports.

"I stretched a bit, like in the final of the Euros [when he had to go off injured]. But the most important thing is it's not that big."

Rodri underwent surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee after he suffered the issue -- which also affected the miniscus -- in a Premier League clash with Arsenal in September 2024.

After initially returning to action at the end of last season, Rodri has been building up his fitness in recent weeks as he bids to return to the form that saw him win the Ballon d'Or last year.

"It's muscular so two weeks or three weeks [out]," said City manager Pep Guardiola after the game.

"Of course I don't want to lose him even a little because he is such an important player. We tried to take care of him but it is what it is."

City are used to having to cope in Rodri's absence and they did so again as Erling Haaland's ninth-minute goal proved enough for them to earn all three points via a 1-0 victory in west London.

- Brentford vs. Man City: Follow ESPN's live blog
- Guardiola warns Rodri could take time to regain best level
- Man City's Guardiola: Rodri not ready to play 3 games in a week

Speaking on Friday ahead of the game in west London, City boss Pep Guardiola warned it could take most of the season for Rodri to get back to his best.

Rodri played an hour of Wednesday's 2-2 Champions League draw in Monaco after sitting out City's two previous fixtures, with Guardiola having to carefully manage his star midfielder.