Arsenal's 4-1 victory over Aston Villa on December 30 puts more pressure to Manchester City, who needs to win against the underdog of the season, Sunderland, to keep up with the high pressure. The team has improved a lot in the last few weeks compared to how they were last year, and on January 1st, a club legend will return: Rodri, who has continued to suffer a series of injuries after recovering from his torn ACL at the end of last season.
Manager Pep Guardiola confirmed that the Spanish midfielder and 2024 Ballon d'Or is fit to play a few minutes. "Rodri has come back. Maybe he can play a few minutes. We need it desperately. Doku, maybe", Guardiola said, who said that they have seven or eight injured players and two at the Africa Cup of Nations. "In terms of squad we are not in our best right now but in terms of points we are better than last season".
The mach will come weeks after City beat Sunderland 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium, but Guardiola said they are a tough club with an "unbelievable" support from the crowd: they were in second division last year and are now seventh at the league, having beaten Newcastle, Arsenal and drawing with Aston Villa.