Real Madrid Pursues Rodri as Mourinho Insists on New Midfielder

For weeks, Rodri’s name has hovered around the offices of Valdebebas, a long-term idea rather than an immediate operation. Then Real Madrid hit fast-forward on another front. With RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande now virtually signed and sealed, the spotlight has swung back to the Spaniard – and this time with real intent.

According to reports in Spain, Madrid have already reactivated the machinery to bring Rodri to the Bernabéu and are preparing a formal offer to Manchester City as soon as Diomande’s deal is officially closed. The sequence is clear: finish one midfield signing, then go all-in on the next.

Mourinho’s red line

Inside the club, one voice has cut through the usual summer noise: Jose Mourinho’s. The Portuguese coach, back in Madrid and wasting no time, considers the arrival of a new midfielder this summer as non‑negotiable. Not a luxury. A necessity.

And in his eyes, Rodri is the prototype.

Leader. Organiser. Versatile. A player who can slow the game to his rhythm or speed it up with a single pass. Mourinho views him as the perfect anchor for a team that still wants to dominate Europe with the ball at its feet.

For a while, the main obstacle was not City’s reluctance but Florentino Perez’s reservations. The president had been the big internal brake on the operation. That resistance has now eased. Perez has given the green light, clearing the political path inside the club. What remains is the hard part of any transfer: putting the right number on the table and getting the final “yes”.

City’s dilemma

On the face of it, the idea of Manchester City parting with Rodri – fresh from a Golden Ball-winning World Cup campaign and widely regarded as one of the best in his position – sounds improbable. Yet the context matters.

City know the midfielder is entering the final year of his contract. That changes the equation. The English champions are open to a sale if the offer matches their valuation, which currently sits between €50 million and €60 million. For a player of his status, that figure reflects the contract situation as much as his quality.

Real Madrid sense an opening. They believe the numbers are manageable, the timing favourable and, crucially, the player’s will aligned with theirs. Rodri, by all accounts, has his heart set on a return to Spain. When that happens in modern football, negotiations tend to move faster.

The brain Perez wants

Inside the Bernabéu boardroom, the vision is already drawn. Perez and his sporting department see Rodri as the “brain” of next season’s team, the pivot around which the rest of the structure can rotate. Young, technical players around him; a proven, World Cup‑hardened organiser at the base.

The data backs the perception. Last season in the Premier League, Rodri made 21 appearances, scoring once. The raw goal tally barely scratches the surface of his influence. He averaged 1.2 key passes per game and completed 90% of his passes – numbers that underline both his creativity and his reliability in possession.

On the international stage, his status is even clearer. At the recent World Cup, he was the heartbeat of Spain’s midfield, dictating tempo, breaking lines and setting the platform for the team’s attacking play. “Heart and soul” is no exaggeration; he operated as both shield and conductor.

A deal ready to ignite

Madrid’s plan is straightforward: close Diomande, then accelerate for Rodri. With Mourinho pushing hard, Perez now on board and City open to talks at the right fee, the conditions are in place for a major midfield reshuffle on both sides.

The coming days will reveal whether Madrid’s optimism is justified or whether City decide that replacing such a central figure is too great a risk, even with a strong offer on the table.

If the deal happens, Rodri will not just be another marquee signing. He will be the man asked to think for Real Madrid on the pitch – the metronome, the organiser, the calm in the storm of another demanding season.