Real Madrid Nears Rodri Transfer as Manchester City Softens Stance
The long courtship between Real Madrid and Rodri is edging towards its decisive moment. In Spain, the mood is clear: this is now a matter of “when”, not “if”.
According to AS, both Real president Florentino Perez and coach Jose Mourinho have given their approval to the signing of the 30-year-old Manchester City midfielder. The operation is described as being in its final stretch, with the Spanish outlet even speaking of a “solution within the next 24 hours”.
Club representatives from Madrid and Manchester are expected to sit down on Thursday. That meeting is being framed as the one that should finally close a saga that has dragged through the summer.
Price drops as City prepare to give way
The most striking twist lies in the numbers. Early in the window, reports put City’s demands around the €100 million mark, a figure that reflected both Rodri’s status and his importance to Pep Guardiola’s side. AS now claims the fee on the table has fallen dramatically, with the deal expected to be completed for somewhere between €40 million and €50 million.
If those figures hold, Real Madrid would be securing one of the game’s most influential midfielders at almost half the originally touted price.
The shift in tone from England has been building. On Tuesday, Marca reported that the Premier League champions, who “hold the player in the highest regard”, had begun to soften their stance. The line from Manchester is no longer one of outright resistance, but of conditional acceptance: if Rodri decides to go, they will not stand in his way.
City have spent months trying to tie the Spaniard down on an improved contract. His current deal runs until 2027, but attempts to extend it ahead of time have failed. With that in mind, this transfer window is being framed as a crucial moment: a final opportunity to secure a substantial fee rather than risk a departure on a free further down the line.
Rodri’s dream, Real’s long-term plan
On the player’s side, there has been little attempt to hide his feelings. Rodri has repeatedly indicated he is open to a move to the Bernabeu. Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has written that the midfielder would “love” to join Real and “dreams” of wearing the white shirt.
For Madrid, this is no impulsive move. Rodri has been on their wishlist for a long time, seen internally as the ideal heir to a midfield era defined by Toni Kroos and Luka Modric. His Ballon d’Or win after a dominant 2023/24 season only sharpened that view, reinforcing the sense that he is the natural leader for Real’s next great engine room.
The irony has not been lost in Spain: the club that boycotted the Ballon d’Or gala now looks set to build around the man who walked away with the prize.
A return to the capital – in different colours
A switch to Real would also carry a strong narrative twist. Rodri is no stranger to Madrid. He came through Atletico Madrid’s youth system and featured for Los Rojiblancos in the 2018/19 season before heading to Manchester. A move back to the Spanish capital would be a return home of sorts – but this time on the other side of the city’s fierce divide.
In March, he gave a glimpse of his thinking when asked about Real’s interest, admitting that you “cannot just easily turn Real down” if an offer comes. That line now hangs over the story like a prophecy waiting to be fulfilled.
Rodri arrives at this crossroads as the reigning best player of the 2026 World Cup, a midfielder at the peak of his powers and with the leverage that comes from success at every level. Real see a cornerstone. City see a leader they may be about to lose.
The next 24 hours, if the Spanish reports are right, will tell us whether one of the most significant midfield transfers of the decade finally moves from speculation to signature – and whether the balance of power in Europe’s middle third is about to tilt towards the Bernabeu once again.
