Manchester City midfielder Rodri played more than 60 minutes in the third round of the 2025 Club World Cup Group G tie, and Guardiola said he was happy with Rodri's progress.

Thanks to goals from Doku, Haaland, Foden and Savio, Manchester City defeated Serie A giants Juventus 5-2 in this game and successfully built momentum for the round of 16 by finishing first in the group.

It is worth mentioning that Manchester City midfielder Rodri played 66 minutes against Juventus. In the 2024/25 season, the Ballon d'Or winner Rodri suffered cruciate ligament and meniscus injuries and missed many games until he came on as a substitute against Bournemouth in the final stage of the season.

Talking about Rodri's current form, Manchester City coach Guardiola said, "We have to take this step. We are a bit lucky that the sun was covered by clouds. Although the weather is hot and humid, sooner or later he will have to play."

"This is a process that needs to be carried out step by step, starting with 20 minutes, 25 minutes and then 35 minutes. I originally arranged for him to play for 45 minutes, but at halftime he said he wanted to play another 5 to 10 minutes."

Guardiola pointed out that "the game was already under our control, the ball possession rate was high, and he did not lose many balls in transition. We lost a lot of transition balls in the previous two games, but it did not happen in this game."

"Everyone knows how important he is and when the best player in the world is not in the squad it's a loss and everyone knows that. But I was happy to see him play a good 60 minutes and hopefully he can continue to make a big contribution for us as he has been doing since joining the team."