Major update on Real Madrid’s pursuit of Rodri as Man City’s asking price is revealed

Madrid have been chasing a defensive midfielder who can offer them greater control since the departures of Toni Kroos and Luka Modric. The iconic midfield duo were integral to multiple Champions League titles and the club have tried and failed to find adequate replacements. Arsenal’s Martin Zubimendi was long-admired and a key target for Xabi Alonso last summer when the player was at Real Sociedad, but Madrid lost out to the Gunners.

With Los Blancos left ruing the absence of a metronome in the middle of the park, they have turned their attentions to Rodri. The Spaniard would slot straight into the heart of the Madrid midfield and offer a different option to the club’s existing options. With Rodri’s contract running dangerously close to its expiry, City may feel obliged to cash in on the 29-year-old who has suffered a couple of injury-blighted seasons.

According to Spanish journalist Ramon Alvarez de Mon, Rodri has been identified as Madrid’s number one target to bolster their central midfield. The club are expected to track his fitness in the second half of the Premier League season and into the World Cup before they make any sort of offer. Alvarez de Mon claimed that the Ballon d’Or winner would carry a €50 million (£43.9m) price tag with City ready to accept a fee for their key player, rather than risk losing him on a Bosman transfer at the end of June 2027.

Since being crowned the best player in the world, Rodri has struggled to return to his top levels following an injury to his anterior cruciate ligament. The midfielder was sidelined for almost the entirety of last season and has been unable to maintain a consistent level of form or fitness this campaign. Owing to his fitness and diminished physical levels since returning from the career-threatening injury, Rodri has at times not been able to to perform as a sole holding midfielder in Pep Guardiola’s side.

Given this, the English club may look to find a more dynamic option for their midfield going forwards and could look to sell Rodri to fund a new signing. Cashing in on the Spain international could also make sense given his lofty salary at the club and the short time remaining on his contract. If City wanted to keep Rodri, they may have to offer him improved terms on his estimated £220,000 per week deal at the club.

There may be a more complicated issue for Madrid to overcome if they want to bring Rodri to the Santiago Bernabeu. Spanish icon Gaizka Mendieta explained that the midfielder has a fondness for Barcelona and may be hesitant to join the Catalan club’s bitter rivals.

“When he does leave Man City, I could see it being an agreement with the club, there is also a big connection there with Barcelona,” he said. “There was Txiki Begiristain there and of course Pep Guardiola, but it would still be up to Rodri personally. I still think it would be hard for him to join Real Madrid.”

For the moment, Rodri remains a City player and will play at the Etihad until at least the end of the season. This will include a Champions League round of 16 tie against Los Blancos, with the clubs facing each other for the fifth consecutive season in the European competition. The game will provide both Rodri and Alvaro Arbeloa’s team to get a close look at one another.

City will need Rodri to be at his best in what could be his final four months at the club as they fight for trophies on four fronts. They will battle Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final, the Premier League title race and could face the Gunners in the FA Cup and Champions League if they progress deep into those tournaments.