Rodri walked out of El Prat airport before dawn, greeted by cameras and a small pack of reporters waiting for the plane carrying the reigning Ballon d’Or holder into Catalonia.
“I’m very happy to be here. It’s been an intense few days, but I’m glad everything is sorted out,” the Spain captain told reporters on arrival.
“Playing for Barcelona is a dream come true for me.”
He waved, signed a couple of shirts and repeated his ambition for the season ahead: Barca, he said, are going for the Champions League and everything else that comes their way.
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The €65m deal that ended seven years at City
The 30-year-old will undergo his medical on Tuesday morning before signing a contract that runs until 2030. Manchester City accepted a bid worth €65m plus €5m in bonuses on Sunday afternoon, the third proposal Barcelona had lodged in two weeks.
An initial €45m opening bid and a €60m follow-up were both rejected. City’s board only relented once Barcelona lifted the fixed fee and added the bonus structure.
Flick’s phone call swung the choice
Talks with Real Madrid, who had put together what Forbes described as a reasonable personal offer, broke down in early August. It was a call from Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick that changed the picture. Rodri’s agent went on Spanish radio to confirm his client wanted Barca, and sporting director Deco flew back to Manchester with the final bid.
Guardiola gone, Maresca in
Rodri leaves the Etihad after 298 appearances and a trophy haul that includes four Premier League titles, two FA Cups, three League Cups and the 2023 Champions League in which he scored the only goal of the final against Inter Milan, Al Jazeera reports.
He also leaves a Manchester City in transition. Enzo Maresca was appointed City manager on a three-year contract on 29 June, after Pep Guardiola stepped down at the end of last season and closed out a decade in Manchester.
Medical Tuesday, unveiling at the Joan Gamper
Once the medical is done, Rodri is due to sit down for a formal dinner with president Joan Laporta and Deco before his presentation on Wednesday at the Joan Gamper Trophy match against Al Ahly. He will not feature. Rodri had minor back surgery earlier in the summer and missed City’s Community Shield against Arsenal, and he has not trained with his new team-mates.
He arrives as a World Cup winner. Spain lifted their second title this summer with Rodri as captain, and he was voted the tournament’s best player.
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