Rodri has responded sharply to criticism of his recent comments about a potential move to Real Madrid, urging doubters to listen to the full interview before forming a view. He did not shrink from the subject in public comments after Spain\u2019s win, saying: \u201cYou can\u2019t turn down one of the world\u2019s best clubs,\u201d he said . \u201cReal Madrid is always Real Madrid. The door is not closed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The remarks predictably drew widespread attention and left many City fans unhappy, particularly given the timing after the team\u2019s exit from the Champions League. Rodri rejected the suggestion that he had been courting another club deliberately, arguing the press had overplayed selected extracts from a longer conversation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m used to it,\u201d he laughed in the mixed zone after Spain\u2019s 3\u20130 win over Serbia. \u201cIf, out of a 50-minute interview, they cut out whatever they want … in the end, I don\u2019t have much more to say.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a person who speaks directly. The interview is there if you want to listen to it in its entirety … and not just certain snippets.\u201d<\/p>\n
Behind the headlines are clear reasons why Real Madrid would consider midfield reinforcements. The departures of Luka Modri\u0107 and Toni Kroos have left a visible void, and after failing to land a suitable replacement last summer the club are expected to pursue a new tempo-setter this window.<\/p>\n
Rodri’s r\u00e9sum\u00e9 makes him a high-profile option. He is described in the coverage as an undisputed superstar with La Liga experience and as close to a guarantee as Madrid could find. That standing sits in contrast with interest in younger prospects such as Adam Wharton and Kees Smit, which some supporters find less persuasive.<\/p>\n
There are also complications. An anterior cruciate ligament tear at the start of last season is cited as having left him diminished for a period, and reports say Madrid officials remain unconvinced he has fully returned to the level that won the 2024 Ballon d\u2019Or. Wages and comparative cost are further considerations, and any approach would depend on complete confidence in his fitness and form. Rodri enters the final 12 months of his contract, a factor that could influence decision-making on both sides.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Rodri defended his comments on a possible Real Madrid move and urged people to hear whole interview.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10003,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[238,987,1163],"tags":[1073,1064,1047],"class_list":["post-10004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-manchester-city","category-real-madrid","category-transfers","tag-acl-injury","tag-ballon-dor-2","tag-champions-league"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10004"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10004\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10003"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}