A press report confirmed today, Thursday, that Rodri, one of the standout summer signings at Barcelona, is already raising doubts within Hansi Flick's coaching staff.
Barcelona sealed one of the biggest deals of the summer. Rodri looked bound for Real Madrid, but the Catalans swooped late to snatch the best player at the last World Cup.
The move was a major sporting triumph and a symbolic one too. The Blaugrana had beaten their great rivals to a coveted target.
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Rodri, it is said, chose Barcelona for a style of play he sees as better suited to his qualities. He also wanted to line up alongside several national team colleagues with whom he shares a good relationship.
So far the former Manchester City and Atletico Madrid man has featured in just two La Liga matches, playing around twenty minutes against Athletic Bilbao and then Rayo Vallecano. Every sign points to a regular starting role arriving soon.
Yet the programme "El Chiringuito" has revealed some worrying information. At Barcelona, Rodri is not necessarily viewed as an indispensable starter.
Flick and his staff believe the player cannot start around 60 matches across the season, so he will share his role with Marc Bernal. The two midfielders will split playing time equally.
Worth noting, too, is that Rodri underwent minor back surgery during the summer, which understandably disrupted his pre-season preparations.
Doubts about his fitness ran deeper than that. They surfaced before the World Cup and featured in discussions around the Spanish national team. It is reasonable to assume Flick will lean on the veteran mainly in the big matches, with Bernal, seen as his successor at club and international level, getting a chance in the less important La Liga fixtures, as has already happened at the start of this season.
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