A concerning transfer update has emerged regarding a “world-class” Manchester City legend, with alarm bells ringing for Pep Guardiola.
Man City suffer double injury blow
Guardiola’s men will be hoping to wrestle the Premier League title away from Liverpool this season, having fallen well below their usual standards in 2025/26, not helped by a serious knee injury to Rodri. Now, the City boss has provided a worrying fitness update regarding the Spaniard, as well as Phil Foden, with the former expected to be out until after the September international break.
“Phil was doing really good but he had a problem with a knock on his ankle that’s why as a precaution we did it. Rodri’s getting better but he had a big injury in the last game against Al-Hilal and for the last five or six weeks. He’s training right now and in the last two or three days is better. Hopefully maybe the international break is when he will be really really fit.
“Hopefully, in the games [before then] he can play some minutes. But the important thing is to not have pain because we don’t want him to be come back and injured, come back and injured. We will try desperately to avoid that but he’s training the last two or three days with us and that’s good.”
Real Madrid want to make Rodri Europe's highest paid midfielder
Now, according to a fresh report from AS [via Sport Witness], Real Madrid are still interested in signing Manchester City legend Rodri this summer. His future is described as “open”, with Madrid willing to make him the highest paid midfielder in Europe, and alarm bells ringing for Guardiola. He hasn’t yet made a decision about what is next for him, but Xabi Alonso wants him at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Losing Rodri would be a disaster for City, especially this late in the transfer window, with the 29-year-old a Ballon d’Or winner who has become an icon at the Etihad.
Granted, there is no guarantee that the Spain international will return to his very best after such a serious ACL injury, but he remains a huge player for Guardiola, being hailed by teammate Ilkay Gundogan.
“Rodri is the perfect midfielder and there’s no one that plays his position better than he does – there are so many clubs in Europe that are looking for a world-class holding midfielder, but in the end there’s only him! What a development in recent years!”
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Hopefully, Rodri will feel that he still has unfinished business at City, helping them regain the Premier League title this season, as well as get their hands on the Champions League for a second time. The appeal of Madrid is clear for any player, though, so Guardiola will be sweating over his future.