FC Barcelona aims to finalize Rodri signing by Monday in deal worth up to €70 million

FC Barcelona is pushing to close one of the summer’s biggest transfers before the week begins, with the Catalan club targeting Monday as the deadline to wrap up a deal for Manchester City’s Rodri. The price tag sits in the range of €65-70 million. Rodri turned 30 in June. Rodri, born Rodrigo Hernández Cascante, has already agreed to personal terms with Barcelona on a four-year contract. He would become one of the club’s highest-paid players. The only thing standing between him and a return to Spanish football is about €10 million in valuation gap between what Barcelona wants to pay and what City wants to receive. The numbers gap Barcelona’s journey to this point has been a slow escalation. The club initially came to the table with offers in the €45-50 million range. The latest bid has jumped considerably: €65 million in fixed fees plus €5 million in performance-based add-ons, bringing the total package to €70 million. That still falls short of City’s reported €80 million valuation of their midfielder. City signed Rodri from Atlético Madrid in 2019. He won the 2024 Ballon d’Or. Why Rodri, why now Barcelona’s midfield has been weakened by an injury to Frenkie de Jong, creating a gap ...