Man City boss Pep Guardiola makes Rodri claim after 2-1 loss to Wolves as Alan Shearer delivers verdict

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola insists his side cannot be overly-reliant on Rodri after they slumped to a 2-1 loss at Wolves on Saturday.

After six wins from six to start the defence of their Premier League title, a Ruben Dias own goal and Hwang Hee-chan strike earned Wolves a first home win of the league campaign and handed City a first loss.

Rodri was absent for the fixture due to suspension following his red card against Nottingham Forest last weekend. Guardiola was asked about the midfielder's absence after the loss and responded: "Rodri is an important player. We cannot count on him and you have to supply for another [player playing there]."

He added: "Congratulations Wolves, they deserved it. We had chances and struggled to deal with transitions and they played very well. We were there and settled well and the question is when the opponent is faster and quicker, we have to accept it."

Premier League record goalscorer Alan Shearer hailed the performance from the home side as he praised their defensive performance after City dominated the ball.

He said: “Although Man City had a lot of possession, efforts on goal, pressure, Wolves didn’t half defend well. They showed a great attitude again, got a bit of luck with the deflection for the first goal, had one shot on target the whole game which produced the second goal.

“Haaland was kept quiet which is unusual, [Craig] Dawson did a great job on him. The result wasn’t a fluke, they worked very hard for it and got the reward.”

Up next for City is a trip to RB Leipzig in the Champions League with their next Premier League fixture away at Arsenal on Sunday, October 8. The Gunners closed the gap on City to one point after they picked up a comfortable 4-0 win at Bournemouth.