Rodri’s injury a huge blow to Man City’s title hopes; Christian Pulisic continues to deliver for Milan

Hello there! There may be a slow week ahead, but the action from Europe’s top leagues over the weekend offers much food for thought as the countdown to next weekend officially begins. I’m Pardeep Cattry with a look back at the weekend that was.

📺 Footy fix

All times U.S./Eastern

Monday, Sept. 23
🇮🇹 Serie A: Atalanta vs. Como, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Network, Paramount+
🇺🇸 NWSL: Angel City vs. Portland Thorns, 10 p.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Network

Tuesday, Sept. 24
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 EFL Cup: Manchester City vs. Watford, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 EFL Cup: Chelsea vs Barrow, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+
🇪🇸 La Liga: Real Madrid vs. Alaves, 3 p.m. ➡️ ESPN+

⚽ The Forward Line

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 City’s title chances take hit with Rodri injury

Manchester City may have rescued a point in their 2-2 draw with 10-man Arsenal on Sunday, but the dropped points are perhaps the least of their worries. Midfielder Rodri came out of the game in the 21st minute with an ACL injury, which will likely keep him out for a good while, potentially the entire season. 

The injury comes just days after he complained about fixture congestion, saying players are “close” to striking over the jam-packed schedule. It’s a particularly pertinent issue for him – he played 60-plus games for club and country last season and has averaged 50-plus games a season for City since joining the team in 2019. His match log also reflects his importance for City – he’s become the most irreplaceable player on a team full of them, arguably the face of their four-year title-winning streak.

City are still top of the league table after five games and remain unbeaten, though Sunday’s draw with Arsenal capped their winning streak at four. The game was the first part of an acrimonious few days for Pep Guardiola’s side, but they were boosted by the controversial second yellow card to Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard before halftime for kicking the ball and delaying the restart. The red card forced Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta to go with an incredibly conservative gameplan for the second half. The Gunners turned ultra-conservative, conceding 87.6% possession and 28 shots to City in the second half, taking just one shot worth 0.07 expected goals as they held onto their flimsy lead.

Arsenal will take some pleasure in the fact that they limited City to just 1.4 expected goals despite the influx of shots but they also delivered some jaw-dropping stats at their own expense – few will forget how Jurien Timber and Kai Havertz became the first players in Opta’s records to complete zero passes after playing 89-plus minutes in a Premier League match. The worst thing of all for Arsenal, though? The plan did not work – John Stones’ 98th-minute goal meant they left Manchester with one point, not three. City’s Manuel Akanji denounced Arsenal’s approach post-match on more than style points, alleging referees need to protect him and his teammates more against the Gunners.

• Akanji: “It worked for them if they’re happy with the one point. … Always when we play against them, that’s what they’re looking for: the drama. Going hard in the duels, defense, 11 players in their own box and then go on set pieces and try to score a goal. That’s what they’re looking for in the end. We have to defend ourselves because in every duel, every free kick that was given, they went on the floor. Players go on the floor to get up, sprint back again, go on the floor again, one of their team went over to tell the keeper to go on the floor and stuff like this. I mean, there’s nothing we can do about it. In the end, It’s up to the referee to control throughout the whole season, to control these situations. But yeah, there’s nothing else we can do about it.”

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🔗  Midfield Link Play

🇮🇹 Christian Pulisic leads AC Milan to derby win

AC Milan came out with a statement-making win on Sunday in the Derby della Madonnina, beating reigning Serie A champions Inter 2-1 and reversing course on a poor start to the season.

U.S. men’s national team star Christian Pulisic scored his fourth goal of the season to kick things off, though the match was level by the 27th-minute courtesy of Federico Dimarco. Milan, though, attacked effectively over the course of the game – they took 14 shots, put six on target and mustered 1.34 expected goals. Their attack was particularly impactful in the second half with at least three meaningful chances to score the game-winner, which finally came with Matteo Gabbia’s 89th-minute goal. It marked Milan’s first derby win in two years and as Francesco Porzio writes, it was also an important victory for new manager Paulo Fonseca, who was already on the hot seat.

• Porzio: “While [Inter manager] Simone Inzaghi tried to revolutionize his side and changed the whole midfield in the second half, the tactics of Fonseca worked out well as the Portuguese manager made a tactical change and played with a 4-4-2, with Pulisic and [Rafael] Leao playing on the wings and two central strikers (Alvaro Morata and Tammy Abraham) playing in front. The tactical change worked out and confused the Inter coach, who was furious on the bench as his team couldn’t react properly in front of the AC Milan attacks. AC Milan fans can now finally celebrate their first derby win in two years, but most importantly they can see with positive eyes their future under Fonseca, who struggled in his first games at the club but the win against Inter can give him a big boost for the upcoming clashes.”

Milan rise up to seventh in the Serie A table after back-to-back wins in league play, perhaps now boasting renewed optimism that they can actually build upon last season’s second-place finish with much of the season still left to play.

🔗  Top Stories

🍿 City-Arsenal delivers: Here’s more on Manchester City’s draw with Arsenal, which lived up to the hype as the most anticipated Premier League match of the weekend.

⚫🔴 Fonseca’s big win: AC Milan’s win over Inter could be a turning point for the team and for manager Paulo Fonseca after just one win in their opening five games.

🇺🇸 Weah No. 9?: USMNT winger Timothy Weah slotted in as a No. 9 for Juventus over the weekend, potentially changing the calculus for Mauricio Pochettino as he prepares to name his first squad since taking over the national team.

🔵🔴 Ter Stegen injured: Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is set to miss several months with a knee injury, which could derail the strong season they were beginning to map out with new manager Hansi Flick.

🌴 Miami tie NYCFC: Lionel Messi played 90 minutes but was largely missing in Inter Miami’s 1-1 draw at New York City FC on Saturday, but “Messi Mania” was in full swing at Yankee Stadium even if the star offered few glimpses of his magic.

😲 Biting incident: The FA opened up an investigation after Preston North End’s Milutin Osmajic allegedly bit Blackburn Rovers’ Owen Beck during a match over the weekend.

💰  The Back Line

💵 Best bets

• EFL Cup: Manchester City vs. Watford, Tuesday, 2:45 p.m.
  💰 THE PICK: Manchester City to win 3-0 (+500) – This will be Manchester City’s third game in seven days, so expect Pep Guardiola to rotate for their opening fixture of the competition. They will still be the oddsmakers’ favorites in this game regardless of personnel, so expect a routine day at the office for the reigning Premier League champions as they begin the pursuit of another piece of silverware.
• La Liga: Real Madrid vs. Alaves, Tuesday, 3 p.m.
  💰 THE PICK: Vinicius Junior to score (+105) – Real Madrid might not be off to a perfect start this season, but they are winning more often than not thanks to an attack that is reaching peak form. The team has already scored 13 goals in six La Liga games this season and plans to add more to the total on Tuesday, likely relying on a handful of goalscorers. That list includes Vinicius Junior, who has three goals already and looks poised to play big role for the team again this season.

For more picks, predictions, expert tips and the latest betting news, don’t miss out on CBSSports.com’s betting home page.   

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