Barcelona has unexpectedly entered the race to sign Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri, who reportedly has already reached a personal agreement with Real Madrid.
The 30-year-old player is in the final year of his contract at the Etihad Stadium, creating a potential market opportunity for Barcelona to hijack the deal. This move could also be influenced by the recent serious injury to Frenkie de Jong, sidelining him for the rest of 2026.
Rodri is renowned for his tactical discipline, physical dominance, and elite ball-retention skills in midfield — qualities Barcelona values in a defensive midfielder. Apart from Barcelona and Real Madrid, PSG has also shown interest in the player.
Although Real Madrid lead the negotiations due to their pre-existing deal with Rodri, Barcelona believes they can exploit his contract situation to sway him towards Catalonia. Sportingly, Barcelona can offer him absolute leadership in midfield under Hansi Flick, alongside Pedri and a promising project.
Rodri has previously expressed a clear desire to return to La Liga before the end of his career, but whether Barcelona will succeed in hijacking Real’s key transfer target remains to be seen.
