Barcelona's Third Bid for Rodri Approaches Manchester City's Valuation
Barcelona have come back for Rodri again – and this time, they are getting close to Manchester City’s number.
The Spanish giants have lodged a third offer worth around €70million (£60m) for the midfielder, a bid that still falls short of City’s valuation but finally drags the negotiation into serious territory. City, according to club sources, now expect a deal to be wrapped up in the coming days if Barcelona can push the overall package up to around €80m (£68m).
This is not a routine transfer chase. It is the attempted removal of the player who became the heartbeat of a dynasty.
Rodri, 30, is heading into the final year of his contract at the Etihad, five years on from his arrival from Atletico Madrid in 2019. In that time he has stacked up four Premier League titles, two FA Cups, the Champions League and, on a personal level, the 2024 Ballon d’Or. He has been the metronome, the shield, the one constant in a side that conquered England and Europe.
Now, with Pep Guardiola gone at the end of last season, the prospect of Rodri following him out of Manchester is very real.
Barcelona first tested the water earlier this month with an offer of around £38.5m. City barely blinked before rejecting it. The Catalan club returned with a second proposal in the region of €60m (£51m), which was also turned down. A third bid was expected over the weekend – and it has arrived right on schedule.
This time, the mood has changed.
Barcelona close the gap
City’s stance has been clear throughout: they will sell only if the deal hits their valuation. Internally, that figure has been set at around €80m, including bonuses and add-ons. Barcelona’s latest offer, at €70m, edges the conversation to within striking distance, especially with performance-related clauses now being discussed.
Both sides are understood to feel the gap can be bridged. The pressure around the negotiation has been rising for weeks, and it has not just come from the clubs.
Earlier in the summer, City told Rodri that if no agreement with Barcelona was in place before pre-season, he would be required to report back to Manchester as normal. The deadline passed. Rodri returned to England and resumed work while talks rumbled on in the background.
At the same time, City made it clear to the player’s representatives that they would have to be proactive if they wanted to get him out. It was not enough for Barcelona to push from one side; the player’s camp had to help haul the bid closer to City’s demands.
They have done exactly that. Rodri’s entourage is now deeply involved, effectively working alongside Barcelona to construct a package that satisfies the Premier League champions. The midfielder remains determined to join the Catalan club and play at Camp Nou, and that desire has become a driving force in the final stages of the deal.
A legend edging towards the exit
Rodri’s status at City is not in question. He has grown into a modern great, the on-field reference point of a team that swept almost everything in front of it. His role in Spain’s World Cup triumph this summer only underlined his standing as one of the game’s elite midfielders, and his 6ft 3in frame and positional authority make him exactly the profile Barcelona have been craving at the base of their midfield.
He also comes into this move after overcoming a serious knee injury that disrupted last season, returning to anchor City again as they closed out another title race. Barcelona see a leader, a ready-made pillar for the next phase of their rebuild.
For City, the calculation is more delicate. Lose Guardiola and Rodri in the same summer, and the spine of an era is ripped out. Yet with only a year left on his contract, and the player keen on a new challenge, this is also the last realistic chance to command a fee that reflects his impact.
The third bid from Barcelona does not quite get there. But it has changed the conversation from “if” to “how soon”.
Negotiators on both sides are now working to close the remaining gap, with add-ons and bonus structures expected to be the key. All parties are confident a solution will be found, and City sources are already talking in terms of a deal being completed once the numbers line up.
For the moment, Rodri is still a Manchester City player. He trains, he waits, and he watches as Barcelona edge their offer closer to the figure that will finally prise him away.
If that final push comes, one of the defining players of the Guardiola era will walk out of the Etihad and into a new chapter in Catalonia – and the balance of power in European midfield battles will shift with him.
