Manchester City midfielder Rodri refused to directly address rumors linking him with Real Madrid, but he kept the door open for a potential return to his native country with a loaded “we’ll see.”
The 2024 Ballon d’Or winner, whose contract with City expires in June 2027, is thought to be the dream target for a Real Madrid side in desperate need of a deep-lying playmaker. Links cooled down amid Rodri’s injury woes, but they took no time to ramp back up after his return to the pitch.
The Spaniard expertly avoided addressing the transfer speculation when he spoke to Cadena SER after his team fell 3–0 to Los Blancos in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16, but he failed to deliver the definitive response City fans perhaps hoped to hear.
“I’m not going to answer that,” Rodri said in regards to a potential move the Bernabéu. “It’s a moment to think about what we have now, with my team, in my season, and then we’ll see.”
Real Madrid’s Midfield Solution Lies in the Transfer Market
Despite signing some of the biggest names in the sport over the last two years, Los Blancos failed to replace Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić. On paper, the club already had a long—likely too long—list of midfielders already available.
Yet no matter no matter how hard Xabi Alonso tried to force either Federico Valverde or Arda Güler to become the next Kroos, the two players could never live up to the nearly impossible standard set by the German orchestrator.
Alonso also tried to deploy Bellingham in a deeper role to help compensate for the lack of creativity in the midfield, but the England international was too busy tracking back for his teammates and mopping up their mistakes to ever produce any magic outside of his No. 10 role.
Aurélien Tchouaméni and Eduardo Camavinga, meanwhile, are too defensive-minded to consistently pull the strings of the attack, leaving Real Madrid with a glaring hole in their squad, one that only a player from another club can fill.
City’s Decision Could Come Down to the Bottom Line
Real Madrid have not been coy with their admiration of Rodri, and previous reports suggested the club hoped to use the midfielder’s dwindling contract with City to snag him at a cheaper price.
After all, if the Sky Blues do not cash in on Rodri this summer or next winter, they could watch him leave the club as a free agent in June 2027. Even worse than losing their Ballon d’Or winner would be to lose him for free.
Inking a deal with Real Madrid ahead of the 2026–27 season would ensure City bring home a profit for Rodri ... if they ultimately decide to part ways with the Spain international.
Should Pep Guardiola wish to keep the 29-year-old in his ranks, then the 15-time European champions will have to look elsewhere for a deep-lying playmaker. Fellow Premier League talents Alexis Mac Allister and Enzo Fernández were two players on the club’s shortlist last summer, but they would now likely be viewed only as backup options to the main prize: Rodri.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘We’ll See’—Rodri Delivers Head-Turning Response to Real Madrid Links.
