City can be Real: Rodri is not off to Madrid in bumper transfer deal

It has been a steady, if not spectacular, start to the 2025/26 campaign for Manchester City‘s Pep Guardiola, but his summer tweaks to squad options during the transfer window are continuing to show promise as they settle into life at the Etihad Stadium and continue to improve their own adjustments to his wants and desires.

With four wins and a draw from an opening seven Premier League matches, City sit fifth in the table, and just three points off the top spot. With plenty of football still to play in the campaign, fans who enjoy betting and explore the best betting sites in UK for their wagers will be well aware of the opportunities ahead.

There are some in the City faithful who are relishing a pretty busy New Year transfer window as Guardiola continues to rebuild his squad, and whilst it is unlikely the club will be splashing much cash with most sides likely to be very unwilling to see stars move on at the midway point, we could see another few departures as plans firm up for the end of season period.

Naturally, the future of Rodri continues to feature in the rumour mill speculation with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez known to be a huge admirer of the 29-year-old, 59-capped Spanish international defensive midfielder.

Claims in Spanish media would have you believe the La Liga giants only failed to move for him this summer due to his long term injury and that they wanted to see how he recovered from last season’s anterior cruciate ligament issue and other problems he has had in recent months.

However, despite limping off in the recent victory over Brentford and concerns over how much time he may now again miss, there is speculation that Los Blancos will bite the bullet and would be willing to pay around the £130 million mark at the end of the campaign.

Whilst that sum would massively improve Pep Guardiola’s rebuild options, we have all seen what the loss of Rodri can do to Manchester City’s chances of picking up points, so it is likely that the club would remain unwilling sellers.

The other point to mention is that such an offer would be utterly out of character for Real Madrid. They rarely even entertain paying such a sum for a player hitting their 30s, particularly with recent injuries factored in, choosing instead to be more economical.

Speculation surrounding Real Madrid’s interest will no doubt continue for every transfer window that he remains at the club as it is a headline that works in the modern day media, but it is perhaps very safe to say Pep Guardiola will feel very confident about keeping him for as long as he wants him to be.

The only time Manchester City fans should now perhaps really be worried about a club like Real Madrid coming in for him is as he gets closer to his natural contract expiry.