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Manchester City’s Rodri may not be ‘really fit’ until mid-September
Guardian sport
Manchester City’s Rodri, who missed most of last season after rupturing anterior cruciate ligament injury last September, is unlikely to be “really fit” until after this September’s international break, says manager Pep Guardiola.
The midfielder’s fitful comeback was interrupted at the Club World Cup in the United States when a substitute appearance at the last-16 stage against Al-Hilal was curtailed in extra time by an unspecified injury. “Rodri is getting better but he had a big injury in the last game against Al-Hilal,” said Guardiola. “He has trained better in the last few days. Hopefully after the international break, he will be really fit.”
City travel to Wolves on 16 August and then face Tottenham and Brighton before the September break. Guardiola added: “Hopefully in these games, he can play some minutes, but what is important is that he doesn’t have pain because we don’t want Rodri coming back injured. We will try desperately to avoid that.”
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See that there is a bit of discussion below the line on my use of football being back in the preamble. That it never went away especially with Euro 2025, that the league season started last weekend, etc. All points I agree with but the saying felt right to use given that this is our first matchday live of the season, which I mentioned in the first sentence in my preamble. “Football … you never left us” certainly does not have that same je nais se quois. But I digress, for who am I to not listen to the masses.
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Updated at 09.12 BST
Q&A? Q&A! We have spoiled you rotten with our very first matchday live Q&A of the season, if I do say so myself. Our Midlands, south-west England and Wales football correspondent Ben Fisher will be around later today to answer some of your Football League questions. Send them in below the line or via email which you can find at the top of this blog. Go, go, go!
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And, of course, the rest of the EFL continues to storm on. It was a good start for Luton in League One last weekend as Wimbledon’s Ryan Johnson became one of the first victims of the own goal this season.
Wimbledon will hope to bounce back against Lincoln today. Also in action: Reading v Huddersfield, Leyton Orient v Wigan.
And in League Two it was a opener to forget for Plymouth while Cardiff and Huddersfield made hay under new managers Brian Barry-Murphy and Lee Grant.
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Away from the Championship, the second week of the Scottish Premiership makes way with Livingston v Falkirk, St Mirren v Motherwell and Rangers v Dundee. It is, of course, too early to call a title winner but if the opening weekend was anything to go by …
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Leicester – also relegated from the top-flight last season – face Sheffield Wednesday tomorrow. Dejphon Chansiri’s reign at Wednesday is facing a boiling point. Protests and a fly-over are planned and the chair of the supporters’ trust, Ian Bennett, says the feeling around the club is ‘despair’. He speaks to Will Unwin and what could be a pivotal moment for the 158-year-old club.
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So what are the big Championship matches to look out for today then? Southampton, who finished bottom of last season’s Premier League by quite are in action at 12.30pm. They host Wrexham, a small Welsh club became the first team in EFL history to be promoted in three straight seasons and have been on quite a journey since their Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney came in. Will they make an appearance tonight?
The 5.30pm kick-off sees Bristol City take on Sheffield United. Two sides that made the playoffs last season but could not quite get over the line. Which of the two will put aside their hurt first tonight?
You can see all of today’s upcoming fixtures here and stay tuned here as we bring you team news and updates as they come.
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Updated at 08.42 BST
Today 10 more Championship matches kick-off. Anyone a shoo-in for promotion? Play-off contenders? Youngsters to look out for? Ben Fisher has you covered.
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Updated at 08.27 BST
In last night’s Championship opener Ipswich, relegated from the Premier League last season, left it late for a 1-1 draw at Birmingham. George Hirst’s 94th minute penalty did was the visitors’ only shot on target in a tricky night for Kieran McKenna’s men. Read Ben Bloom’s report from St Andrew’s.
The very first goal of the Championship season. Photograph: Nick Potts/PAShare
Updated at 08.27 BST
Preamble
Good morning and welcome to our very first matchday live of 2025-26! Here you can get all the latest news and updates from me and our correspondents as we countdown to the start of the Football League season.
We want you to get involved too so get in touch either below the line or via email and let me know what your football plans are for the day, your hopes and dreams for the season (and how realistic they may or may not be) and any personal pre-season rituals.
Football … we are so back.
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