Unexpectedly, Man City lost to Aston Villa. In this match, it was clear that without Rodri's presence, Man City could not develop their best game, especially as Aston Villa played better than Man City. Aston Villa's game is very well organized, the players are fast and physically strong, Aston Villa is able to control many aspects.
I don't agree that Manchester City's defeat was due to the absence of Rodri who was absent due to a suspended red card.
From the replay that I watched, it was difficult for Manchester City to develop their best game because Aston Villa dominated on all fronts. Douglas Luiz and Pau Torres performed quite extraordinary in deciding attacks and closing down Alvarez and Silva's movements so that Haaland didn't get service like in other matches.
Manchester City's third defeat gave us the advantage of Liverpool who managed to win over Sheffield United.