No Rodri, No Problem: Maresca Backs Manchester City to Find 'The Next One' After £65m Barcelona Exit

Enzo Maresca has faced down the first major challenge of his Manchester City tenure with a message of quiet confidence, declaring that the club will set out to find the “new Rodri” following the Spain midfielder's £65 million transfer to Barcelona. The departure of a player widely considered among the best No 6s in world football is a sizable blow to City's new manager as he embarks on his first season in charge. Rodri, the 2024 Ballon d'Or winner and the heartbeat of City's recent dominance, leaves a void in the heart of midfield that many believed would be impossible to fill. Maresca, however, is not fazed. Speaking ahead of his side's meeting with Bournemouth, which follows a deflating Community Shield defeat, the Italian invoked one of the club's most successful transitions as his blueprint for moving forward. When Sergio Agüero — City's all-time leading scorer — departed in 2021, few imagined his goal output could be replaced. Erling Haaland then arrived and promptly redefined what a debut season could look like. “You need to be good at recruiting the next one,” Maresca said, as reported by The Guardian. It is a philosophy woven into the fabric of the Etihad: great players come and go, but the machine keeps winning. Maresca's task now is to identify which profile can approximate Rodri's unique blend of control, anticipation and tempo-setting — or whether City's system itself must evolve to compensate. The subplot carries significance well beyond club football. With the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico fast approaching, Rodri will now anchor a Spain side tipped among the tournament favourites in Barcelona colours, while City must adapt to life without the man who made their midfield tick through years of domestic dominance and a historic 2023 treble. For Maresca, the visit of Bournemouth represents the first genuine test of this new era — and the first opportunity to demonstrate that, at Manchester City, even the seemingly irreplaceable eventually get replaced. Source: Guardian Football