Barcelona sign Rodri – but Real Madrid are the real losers

17 Aug 2026 18:57 BST | 5 min read

Robin Bairner | Chief Editor

Accredited football journalist and editor covering the game since 2006

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Barcelona and Real Madrid have got their transfer business mixed up in the deal that will take Manchester City midfielder Rodri to Camp Nou.

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Rodri will become Barcelona third major addition of the transfer window after Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi when he arrives in a deal worth a total of €76 million, according to BBC Sport.

On the face of it, there’s a lot to like about the move. He’s a Ballon d’Or winner and is back to the height of his powers following an ACL injury, claiming the Golden Ball as Spain won the 2026 World Cup.

Current ETV

Rodri

DM, M (C)

Man City

Rodri

DM, M (C)

Man City

ETV Range

€53.3M - €65.1M

He’s perhaps the ultimate game-controlling force of his generation, a midfielder who can bend the tempo of a match to his desire.

But the curious thing about the deal is that Barcelona already have elite midfielders capable of controlling games, but do have underlying weaknesses elsewhere.

On the other hand, Real Madrid, who elected to blow much of their transfer budget on the comparatively untested Yan Diomande, do not and have been crying out for such a player since the retirement of Toni Kroos in 2024.

Barca prioritised Rodri over a striker

For Barcelona, signing Rodri seems like a luxury move while there remains a gaping void that Robert Lewandowski filled last season in attack.

Certainly, splashing such money is unlikely to soften Atletico Madrid’s stance of allowing Julian Alvarez to leave, while Barca’s other options, including Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martinez and Sporting CP’s Luis Suarez are not cheap alternatives.

It’s an issue that remains curiously unresolved with a couple of weeks left in the window – and that’s even before considering the lack of centre-back options – so for a comparatively cash-strapped Barca to be splashing out in an area they are already strong seems a strange move.

© IMAGO - Rodri: A generational midfielder - but would Barca's money have been better spent elsewhere?

Real Madrid ignore Rodri to sign Diomande

This is nothing compared to Real Madrid’s strategy, though.

New manager Jose Mourinho arrived and immediately bolstered the defence with a string of Jose Mourinho-type signings: Marc Cucurella, Denzel Dumfries and Ibrahima Konate. Bernardo Silva joined too as Los Blancos prioritised grit and veteran experience.

Rodri would have been a perfect next addition. He falls into the mould of a Mourinho player and would instantly solve a problem that Madrid have had for the past couple of years, offering a surefire guarantee of quality for the foreseeable future.

So what Madrid did next was surprising. They blew €125 million – a club-record fee – to sign Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig.

While the teenager has exploded in the last six months as an enormous prospect, he is also the most overpriced player in the transfer market this summer.

In certain circumstances, such a move would be understandable, yet Madrid already have an attack consisting of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham. Finding another offensive threat wasn’t their problem: getting someone who can control a game was – and it remains so.

© IMAGO - Yan Diomande: Real Madrid's most-expensive ever signing

Perez to blame: Why Real Madrid missed out on Rodri

President Florentino Perez must shoulder the blame for this fiasco. He was, after all, the man who was putting the brakes of a deal for Rodri.

Perez’s position at the Bernabeu was challenged earlier this summer by Enrique Riquelme, who promised to sign Rodri (along with Erling Haaland) was one of the key facets of his presidential campaign.

Fabrizio Romano has explained that this stance was ultimately decisive.

“It's a massive story because Rodri was a target for Real Madrid only for a few weeks in the market. In June, Real Madrid were not going for Rodri. Florentino Perez was not happy for Rodri to be part of the election campaign wanted by Enrique Riquelme, the other candidate to become Real Madrid president,” Romano claimed.

“Then, after the World Cup, Florentino Perez decided to give the green light for Real Madrid to try for Rodri. But then Rodri made a decision. It was almost 10 days ago. He decided to go to Barcelona.”

Madrid have missed out

Kroos’ retirement two years ago marked a watershed moment in Real Madrid’s history. Since the German’s departure, the Bernabeu side has not won a major trophy, with their lack of midfield control a large part of the problem.

Rodri would have brought them precisely this, making Madrid’s failure to sign the World Cup winner all the more acute as Barcelona luxuriate in another midfield star they arguably did not need.