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After defeating Newcastle United in a one-sided contest with a 4-0 margin, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was in appreciation of the midfielder Nico Gonzalez for his exceptional performance at the Etihad Stadium last evening. The 54-year-old was categoric in stating that “Nico Gonzalez is a mini-Rodri” and he expects him to help Manchester City in the absence of the Ballon d’Or winner for the rest of the season.
In the high stakes Premier League clash with top four spot up for grabs, Omar Marmoush got the goals for Manchester City, scoring a first half hat-trick within 14 minutes against a hapless Newcastle United defence. James McAtee made it 4-0 in favour of the reigning champions in the 84th minute, but it was the performance of Nico Gonzalez, 23, that got the eye of the manager Pep Guardiola.
Nico Gonzalez is like a mini-Rodri, a big compliment: Pep Guardiola
In the post-match, Pep Guardiola spoke quite highly of the midfielder, comparing him with his Spanish compatriot after he did the cleaning work in front of the back four, which is synonymous with Rodri over the years. He was quoted as saying, as per the Guardian, “He is like a mini-Rodri, a big compliment. He’s miles away from Rodri – he’s the best – but we have the feeling he’ll help us in the last part of the season with his presence [because] Nico helps a lot, in the 50/50s [or] if there are 10 balls he wins seven.”
“There was a moment he was correcting Erling [Haaland] – when this happens, you think in the next six, seven years and when we have Rodri back that will give us more presence and stability,” Pep Guardiola added. With their big win against Newcastle United, Manchester City jumped to fourth place in the Premier League standings after quite some time, a point ahead of high flying Bournemouth and Chelsea, while their opponents slipped down to seventh place, two points further behind.
Moreover, Manchester City will be taking on Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League playoff match at the Santiago Bernabeu next week.
