Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Rodri will miss Manchester City's FA Cup semi-final against Southampton at Wembley on Saturday. The City manager is unwilling to risk the midfielder, who picked up an injury in last Sunday's match against Arsenal.
Guardiola said he wants to keep Rodri available for as many Premier League games as possible, as City look to hold off Arsenal in the title race. The 29-year-old was not in the squad for the midweek win at Burnley and may also skip the trip to Everton.
The club are concerned that bringing Rodri back too early could rule him out of the final league matches. City moved top of the table for the first time since August after beating Burnley, though Arsenal can reclaim first place by defeating Newcastle on Saturday.
Guardiola was less forthcoming about John Stones, whose contract expires at the end of the season. He declined to say whether the defender would feature against Southampton.
The City boss also spoke about the threat posed by Southampton and the club's new ticket prices, but gave no further details.
