Spanish midfielder has been linked with move to Real Madrid
After another season full of distractions, including the future of manager Pep Guardiola and how long the 55 year old serial winning former Spanish defensive midfielder may remain at the Etihad Stadium, City fans will likely be pretty content with the progress that has been made when it comes to rebuilding the foundations at the club and looking towards the future.
With a number of incomings and outgoings during the summer transfer window, the make up of the first team squad has changed quite dramatically since last term, and although more changes are expected again at the end of the current campaign, whilst it feels likely that City will miss out on the title now there will certainly be those fans who hope that Arsenal's defeat in the League Cup Final will be the start of their true annual 'bottling it'.
Even if it does not, City should be pleased with the on pitch progress that has been made this year as new players bedded in and even Guardiola slightly tweaked his own playing ethos and style, but as the campaign now slowly edges to a close it is almost time to turn attentions properly to the coming 2026/27 season. Plenty of fans will be relishing the off season as they prepare their predictions, but plenty of others will enjoy the offerings of Non GamStop Casinos given their growing popularity. As new platforms enter the market, there is a noticeable shift toward cleaner, more efficient designs. Betride casino reflects this trend and for those who enjoy their online gaming experiences they will undoubtedly be sure to check it out.
Whilst more outgoings are expected, and although there has again already been pretty heavy speculation rumour mill talk about the future of key and experienced midfielder Rodri, it does not sound like the 29 year old Spanish midfielder is yet ready to depart the sunnier climes of Manchester. Having joined from Spanish La Liga outfit Atletico Madrid back in 2019, Rodri has gone on to make 293 appearances for the side since then - and fans, of course, saw just how important he was to Guardiola's first team plans when he missed a lengthy period out with injury the other year.
The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner did admit that he saw his future involving a return to Spain, but although he had previously racked up 47 appearances for Atletico, he saw no reason as to why that would automatically rule him out from a move to Real Madrid, stating 'you can't turn down the best club in the world.'
The Galacticos of Real have long been linked with having an interest in him, but as is usual for them, most of the talk has been about snapping him up as a free agent and he is, of course, out of contract next summer. As he spoke about his future though he sounded pretty confident that he, his representatives and the club would 'sit down and talk' soon enough and find a solution, but that further down the line he would definitely 'like to come back' to his homeland.
To be honest there is nothing really earth shattering in his recent interview and he certainly did not sound in a hurry to leave the club just yet, if anything the only controversial element was his openness to crossing the Madrid divide - but that has been accepted for a number of years given the Real speculation that regularly swirls around him. If he was not interested, they would move on as would the speculation.
He also would not be the only player to represent both clubs across a long career, but with 12 major trophies to his name already, hopefully he can add a couple more during his time at City to his name before he does look to wind down his career elsewhere.