Rodri is slated to arrive in Manchester on Friday, following an extended holiday attributed to his recent back surgery after celebrating World Cup triumph. However, considering his ongoing recovery and the impending shift in his career away from Manchester City, it would hardly be shocking if the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner skips the usual pre-season assessments.
Manchester City is prepared for intense negotiations with Barcelona, aiming to secure over £60 million for the central midfielder, who’s nearing the end of his contract. Last month, he was honored as the player of the tournament—despite showing signs of physical exhaustion last season, yet excelling on the international stage.
Director of football Hugo Viana faces the intricate task of optimizing Rodri’s market value while acknowledging that his departure has been coordinated for some time. Pep Guardiola’s farewell, coupled with Rodri’s limited appearances—only 18 Premier League starts in the past two seasons—suggests this chapter is nearing its inevitable conclusion.
Some analysts argue that his performances during US tours, where slower-paced games were dictated by high temperatures, affirm his unmatched status in Europe. But as City grapples with the reality of his exit, they are confronted by a troubling trend: over the last two seasons, the team has been less successful with Rodri in the starting lineup.
In Premier League context, City’s win rate stands at 50% when he starts, contrasting with a 60.3% success rate without him. This pattern holds across 29 starts in all competitions, marking an unprecedented era in Rodri’s City tenure where the team fares better in his absence.
Manchester City are braced for yet more haggling with Barca and want to recoup more than £60million for Rodri, who was awarded World Cup player of the tournament last month
But in finally coming to terms with a parting of ways, City may look at diminishing returns: in the past two seasons, City win fewer matches when Rodri starts
Although not an exact science – City still always concede fewer goals when he’s the deep midfielder – and a small sample size, it does represent a comparison worthy of note.
City, and Enzo Maresca, would prefer to plough on with him, of course. Their movements in the transfer window paint a picture of how this is only heading one way.
Proactive and forceful club denials around interest in Chelsea’s £120million-rated Enzo Fernandez at the beginning of the summer have now given way to silence. Fernandez wants to reunite with his old boss Maresca and those close to him believe the feeling to be mutual. Ayyoub Bouaddi, the Moroccan who lit up the World Cup, is edging closer to signing from Lille, as the French club demand £85million.
City sources say Bouaddi’s arrival is not linked to Rodri’s future and that they are pursuing him regardless of what happens, in a window that is threatening to become busy if Tijjani Reijnders and potentially another midfielder leave.
Yet his displays across almost 100 senior games, earning rave reviews for a physicality off the ball and intelligence on it, dictate that he can be ready to impact City’s fortunes. His minutes will have to be carefully monitored and managed.
What seemed apparent on Wednesday, when Elliot Anderson was unveiled to supporters during an event at the Etihad, was that the £116million club-record signing fancies more of a roaming ‘box-to-box’ role than filling Rodri’s void.
‘I’ve spoken to the manager a few times – he explained the sort of things that I need to do,’ said Anderson. ‘There is a lot of running, a lot of energy. It’s to try and control games. That is what I can do.
‘I’ll see where I get used. Creating things, driving forward or the other role if they ask me to do that. Kevin De Bruyne was always the player I looked up to over the last 10 years. I loved watching him. To be here at the same club and playing where he played is special.’
Ayyoub Bouaddi (right), the Moroccan who lit up the World Cup, is edging closer to signing from Lille, as the French club demand £85million
There is a feeling that Enzo Fernandez (left) wants to reunite with Enzo Maresca, but for now Elliot Anderson (right) is the man City have identified as the one to run their midfield
City identified Anderson’s aggression and punch in the pass as ideal for the way the Premier League operates these days. Maresca has operated with a two-man midfield in his pre-season fixtures – Mateo Kovacic and Reijnders against Atletico Madrid in South Korea on Sunday – and in that system, Anderson would appear as the one who springs forward, chipping in with the sort of goal he scored away at City during a 2-2 draw in March, arriving late.
Kovacic is ahead of Nico Gonzalez in the pecking order and expected to start Sunday’s Community Shield against Arsenal in Cardiff. Both Gonzalez and Kovacic have publicly declared that they do not wish to leave this summer.
The physical demands Maresca places upon his midfielders is huge, with Phil Foden or Rayan Cherki vying for the role pushed up alongside Erling Haaland. Maresca is looking at around half a dozen options as part of the two, with that second runner crucial. The way Reijnders crashed the boxes during their friendlies showcased exactly what is being preached on the training pitch.
‘I’ve taken take huge confidence knowing that I can perform on a World Cup stage,’ Anderson said, also admitting that he’s still struggling with England’s semi-final defeat by Argentina. ‘Obviously I hadn’t played in anything as big as that yet. I had a big decision to make on who to join and I’m confident I’ve made the right one.’