How Manchester City’s ‘little Lahm’ can help fill the void left by Rodri | Ben McAleer

By The Guardian (Sports, Football) | Created at 2024-09-24 13:20:45 | Updated at 2024-09-30 07:24:41 5 days ago

It was the news Manchester City feared – Rodri may miss the rest of the season. Only 21 minutes into his first Premier League start of the campaign, the Spaniard went down clutching his right knee. The sight of their midfield linchpin on the ground in agony is what supporters feared most – and the signs are that the 28-year-old has suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage.

While City haven’t exactly been underwhelming in the absence of Rodri – they have made an unbeaten start to the season after all – over the course of a season, Pep Guardiola will sorely miss the brain of his side. The return of Ilkay Gündogan eases the absence of Rodri but it’s the emergence of another player that will be a boost to City.

Last year, Guardiola referred to Rico Lewis as “our little Philipp Lahm”. It was high praise indeed. Lahm was not only one of the most decorated right-backs in history but his intelligence meant he was vital during Guardiola’s time as Bayern manager. Although a right-back by trade, Lahm was often used by Guardiola in midfield. The former Germany international’s ability in and out of possession provided Guardiola with the eureka moment he needed to instruct the full-back to tuck into midfield – a tactic the City manager now uses regularly.

Lewis’s utilisation in Manchester so far is similar to that of Lahm in Munich under Guardiola. A versatile full-back by trade, Lewis has started a number of times in the middle. “He has the ability to make all the team play better,” Guardiola said of the player and it’s no coincidence that City won their opening four games of the season when the 19-year-old featured from the outset, against Chelsea, Ipswich, West Ham and Brentford.

Guardiola would have been expected to managed Lewis’s game time to fit his age this season but Rodri’s injury is likely to accelerate the England international’s full integration to first-team player. This is a key season for City. Arsenal are stronger than ever, and Rodri’s injury will give the Gunners the confidence to go all the way having twice finished as runners up to Guardiola’s side.

Guardiola has hinted that this could be his final campaign at the Etihad though there remains a possibility he’ll extend his stay. That is also surely dependent on the outcome of the case against City and the 115 charges. With Lewis ready to step in to fill Rodri’s gargantuan boots at the base of midfield, Guardiola can take some solace in the fact he has a quick-thinking replacement on the books.

“He is so clever, so intelligent: every moment, he knows when to open inside, and what to do,” Guardiola has said of Lewis and it is easy to see why. He is the top-rated teenager in the Premier League this season having returned a WhoScored.com rating of 7.18. The standout performance came in the 3-1 win at West Ham, where his performance in central midfield encapsulated what he can bring. He found a teammate with 93.2% of his 59 passes and made four tackles, more than any other player. For context, West Ham’s ball winners Edson Álvarez and Guido Rodríguez made one between them, despite City having 67.6% possession.

Lewis carried out the basic needs of a ball-winning midfielder but there was more to his game than reclaiming and recycling possession. The touch map showed Lewis not only operating on the right of midfield but close to the touchline, and up and down that flank. With his desire to push upfield to win the ball back in dangerous areas, it’s no wonder he ranks third for possession won in the attacking third (six) in the Premier League this season behind Dejan Kulusevski and Mikkel Damsgaard (both seven).

When Lewis goes to win the ball back, more often than not he is successful. He has a 100% tackle success rate in the 2024-25 Premier League campaign, and only Arsenal’s centre-back William Saliba (18) has made more tackles among players yet to be dribbled past than Lewis (nine). While some refinements are required to his distribution to match Rodri’s level, the versatile youngster is perhaps the best option to deputise for the Spaniard. Guardiola wouldn’t need to tinker with the midfield dynamic and would have the relevant protection for the defence to ensure City are able to dominate games.

While Gündogan and Matheus Nunes will fancy their chances of deputising for Rodri over the coming weeks and months, Lewis is arguably the best option for the role. Partner him with Mateo Kovacic and City will feel confident of an unprecedented fifth consecutive Premier League title.