By Enzo Maresca's own admission, Manchester City "complicated" their 2-0 win over Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday. The patchiness of their performance led Alan Shearer to call Maresca's side "weak" on Prime Video's co-commentary.
City did fail to consolidate their advantage until late on, but never really looked in danger of squandering it. Statistically, Porto were restricted to scraps. For a team who had not been beaten at the Estadio do Dragao throughout the whole of 2026, there were few clear-cut chances to speak of. Not a single shot on target.
Man City's superbly balanced midfield made sure of that.
The danger here is of course to compare what City are serving up under Maresca with performances of the past, where everything flowed simultaneously around Rodri in the style of Pep Guardiola. The football so neat and tidy, with every pass in its precise place, it's difficult to pick fault. But that reality has passed.
There remains no rush about Maresca or the implementation of his philosophy. "Slowly, slowly," he urged on Tuesday, keenly aware that most expected Guardiola's departure to shift the balance of power in Manchester. They might well be disappointed.
Beyond surface level, the Porto win offered plenty of reason to believe Man City are building. Away victories in the Champions League should not be sniffed at, much less with a clean sheet attached.
But the individual display of Ayyoub Bouaddi should perhaps be highlighted as the biggest win. Erling Haaland might argue his match-winning double deserved some column inches, but such is the frequency, certain instances can afford to be glossed over in favour of someone else.
Haaland's most perceptive take actually happened post-match. "I told the chairman [Khaldoon Al Mubarak], we've got a gem there," he said of Bouaddi's influence in Porto. "He did a really good game. He's been amazing in training."
The £86m summer signing from Lille possesses a unique brand of confidence for a player still lodged in his teenage years. Not arrogant or showy, just calm and measured. His first Man City start revealed him to be a very accomplished act indeed, with plenty of Rodri-like mannerisms.
"He was never in panic... the performance from him was unbelievable," beamed Maresca on Prime Video.
Bouaddi has obvious belief in his own technical ability. The shimmies and feints to change direction in possession were evidence of that. He has a controlled tempo about his passing. And he's won the early trust of team-mates, too, who were unbothered about giving him the ball under pressure. Rayan Cherki used him as the bounce player all night.
No higher compliment can be paid than highlighting his passing accuracy as being just as judicious as the previous occupier of this role at City. Rodri was pulling the strings for Barcelona in a 5-1 win over Feyenoord 24 hours later, boasting a passing accuracy of 96 per cent. Against Porto, Bouaddi's was 98 per cent.
This small sample size is clearly not enough to consider the youngster directly comparable. "Baby Rodri" was a tag that seemed to suffocate Nico Gonzalez when he was at the club. It sets you up for failure. But it's clear the make-up of Man City's new midfield is capable of making up for the loss of a player that nobody previously thought replaceable.
Individually, Rodri remains one of a kind. Though the Spaniard's limitations in his final few seasons at Man City after suffering an ACL injury in 2024 meant he could not be relied on to play every three days. But with Bouaddi, Elliot Anderson and Enzo Fernandez, Maresca has a trio of champion midfielders who can.
Anderson is already putting up possessional numbers comparable with Rodri, which is no surprise given he outperformed the 30-year-old across most metrics while playing for Nottingham Forest last term. He is the hinge holding this plan together.
Add Enzo Fernandez to the mix and Maresca has an enviable blend of talent and tenacity. Not one metronome, but three capable of being just as effective in unison.
Of course that is what £326m should buy you. Anderson came off the bench against Porto and was the picture of control, extremely impressive on and off the ball. He is a safer pair of hands than Bouaddi given relative age and Premier League experience, but the 18-year-old will gain plenty from training and playing alongside him.
The spectrum of profiles at Maresca's aid is important, too. Bouaddi is most naturally a No 6, Anderson and Fernandez conform to a No 8 type. But it's moveable. All three have the mobility and dynamism to cover both positions. Fernandez can even play in the 10 and adds a layer of goal threat previously lacking from midfield. Similar to the role of Ilkay Gundogan under Pep, which has arguably never been filled.
All in all, this revamp is made of promising stuff. And the way each has settled into Maresca's positionally fluid system is the money-can't-buy element. £326m might guarantee individual class but does not come with an assurance of immediate success. Connections often take time. Less applicable here.
The biggest test so far comes at Old Trafford against Man Utd this weekend, live on Your Site, with both teams relying on their respective midfield makeovers to establish control in a rivalry that has a tendency to get heated.
It's likely Maresca will revert to Anderson in the holding role with Fernandez just ahead. Bouaddi will have a part to play, too, even if that might be from the bench. It's still early days for the club's newest "gem". But he's a prospect that should excite. One who, in time, might even offer every midfield quality imaginable.
Maybe Manchester City do not need Rodri after all.
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