Behind the scenes of Real deception: a secret meeting that took Rodri to Barcelona

At the time, few understood why. Flick and his players had already flown to England to prepare for a pre-season friendly, yet the sporting director stayed behind in Barcelona. 

That stop was no accident. Deco had booked it deliberately, because a meeting lay ahead that could mark a turning point in Barcelona's transfer window.

Nobody knew it, but Deco had already spoken several times with Rodri's camp by phone. After sounding out the financial terms of a deal, Barcelona chose to go a step further and meet the player himself.

The sporting management demanded total secrecy from everyone involved. For weeks Barcelona had publicly struck a cautious tone over the move, while behind the scenes the picture looked entirely different. No one wanted a photo of that meeting, a leak, or a single misstep that might derail sensitive, strategic talks of this magnitude. That is no easy task in a city like Barcelona, where even the walls seem to see and hear.

Rodri was in Catalonia during those days at the end of July, having attended a wedding on the Costa Brava for someone who turned out to be a key figure in the negotiations.

The midfielder seized the moment and agreed to meet Deco to hear about Barcelona's sporting project first hand. They met in a room at one of the famous five-star hotels, and the talks lasted around two and a half hours.

Deco laid out the project himself: the role Rodri would play, and the importance Flick attaches to him within his ideas and style of play. Barcelona want to make him a key piece in the new project.

That meeting completely changed the Spain international's outlook. Real Madrid had been the club that made the most progress in contacts until that point, and Rodri had listened to their offer and held talks, but he had never given his final agreement.

Feelings shifted sharply after the meeting with Deco. Barcelona came away very satisfied, though they knew a single meeting was not enough to seal a deal of this magnitude.

From that moment, quieter work began. Deco kept in constant contact with the player, while Flick played a decisive role. The German coach spoke to Rodri personally on several occasions to explain what was expected of him and the role he would fill in the team.

That detail captures the harmony between Barcelona's sporting director and the German coach, who are working in complete accord to finalise the signing.

It is not usual for a coach to contact a player directly. Their traditional rival were also watching Rodri very closely, but Barcelona felt the time had come to throw themselves into the process as fully as possible.

Another figure passed by without the public fully noticing, yet according to sources familiar with the negotiations he played an important role throughout the process. His name is Dani Codina.

Many fans barely know what his job involves, but the man responsible for looking after the players is a highly valued figure within Barcelona. His task is to make the players' daily lives easier, so that they need only worry about football.

Travel arrangements, accommodation, any other logistical need: his role is to smooth the player's adaptation and daily routine, and he works closely with the sporting management too.

Why did he matter in this deal? Codina arrived at Barcelona from Manchester City, where he spent years working alongside Rodri and built an excellent relationship with the Spain international.

That trust also counted during the negotiations. According to what "Sport" has learned, Codina helped arrange the meeting held at the hotel, and he assisted at several decisive moments by giving the player a sense of reassurance and closeness.

A number of the guests at Codina's wedding, held a few days before the summit, even joked with Rodri and urged him to join Barcelona.

Still, one final push remained. Deco travelled to Madrid last Tuesday for various reasons connected to the transfer market, and he seized the chance to push the deal further.

The sporting director wanted to tell Rodri's camp in person just how convinced Barcelona are about the need to get this signing done. His message was clear: the club will do everything possible to make him the new leader of their midfield.

This fresh contact strengthened feelings that were already positive. It left the negotiations poised for the player's long-awaited green light.

First revealed by "Sport" and later confirmed by other outlets, Deco's trip to Madrid produced an unexpected effect.

He soon realised his presence in the capital had generated enormous interest. From that moment, only one instruction mattered: "the utmost secrecy".

Barcelona arranged the meetings and moves that followed with as much discretion as possible. They wanted no fresh leaks, keen to protect negotiations they consider highly strategic.

The negotiations rumbled on quietly, edging forward even as doubts began to grow inside the country's leading sports newsrooms.

Talks stretched across the following days, with the parties in constant contact. Then came the answer Barcelona had waited so long to hear.

At around three o'clock last Thursday afternoon, the midfielder's entourage took a call. The project laid out by Deco and Flick had convinced the player, and the deal had taken a decisive step forward.

These were negotiations that left almost no trace. Several phone calls, a secret meeting at a hotel, Flick's role and the quiet influence of Dani Cudina all tipped the scales.

Only the final details remain. Barcelona feel they are close to signing one of the best defensive midfielders in the world, and in doing so they have wrecked the plans of Real Madrid, who had been chasing this signing for a long time.