Rodri Moves Closer to Real Madrid as City Softens Stance
The long courtship between Real Madrid and Rodri is finally reaching its decisive moment.
In Spain, AS reports that both Real president Florentino Perez and coach Jose Mourinho have given their approval to sign the 30-year-old Manchester City midfielder, with an agreement now described as a matter of hours rather than weeks. The Spanish outlet even speaks of a “solution within the next 24 hours”, with representatives from both clubs expected to meet on Thursday to close the deal.
A Galáctico at a discount
The numbers tell their own story. Early in the saga, several reports floated a fee around the €100 million mark, a figure said to match City’s initial demands for one of their most important players. That has shifted dramatically.
According to AS, Real Madrid now expect to pay in the region of €40 million to €50 million to prise Rodri away from Manchester – a price that would represent a major coup for the Spanish giants given his status as one of the world’s premier midfielders.
The apparent drop is the clearest sign yet that City are no longer holding the same hard line.
City relent as contract clock ticks
Marca had already hinted at this change of mood earlier in the week. The paper reported that the Premier League champions, who “hold the player in the highest regard”, are now prepared to accept his departure if that is what he wants.
It marks the end of months of resistance. City have spent weeks – and, in truth, much longer – trying to convince Rodri to extend a contract that currently runs until 2027. Those efforts have failed to produce a breakthrough.
With the midfielder unwilling to commit and the club determined not to risk losing him for nothing further down the line, this transfer window has increasingly looked like their last realistic chance to secure a significant fee. The pressure finally told.
A dream in white
On the player’s side, the direction of travel has been obvious. Rodri has never hidden his admiration for Real Madrid. Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has repeatedly reported that the Spain international would “love” the move and “dream” of wearing the famous white shirt.
His performances have only strengthened Madrid’s resolve. Named best player at the 2026 World Cup and later crowned Ballon d’Or winner after an outstanding 2023/24 season, Rodri has long been viewed in the Spanish capital as the ideal heir to the legendary midfield axis of Toni Kroos and Luka Modric.
The irony has not been lost in Madrid. Rumours linking Rodri to the Bernabéu swirled even as Real were boycotting the Ballon d’Or ceremony where he was honoured, yet privately the club had already identified him as the man to anchor their next great side.
A return to a familiar city
For Rodri, this would not be a leap into the unknown so much as a return to a city he knows intimately. The midfielder came through Atletico Madrid’s youth system and spent the 2018/19 season in the first team before leaving for England.
Back in March, he admitted in an interview that you “cannot just easily turn Real down” if they come calling. That line, at the time, felt like a hint. Now it reads like a prelude.
From Atleti prospect to Manchester City cornerstone and now, potentially, Real Madrid’s new midfield general, Rodri’s journey has circled back to the Spanish capital.
If the signatures arrive as expected, Madrid will not just be signing a world champion. They will be ripping the heart out of City’s midfield and reshaping the balance of power at the very top of European football.
