Rodri’s move to Barcelona remains on track, but is far from done yet.
As already reported, Manchester City have rejected Barcelona’s second offer of €60 million plus variables that could take the deal to €70 million.
The English club continue to demand a fixed fee in the range of €70-80 million for the midfielder despite the fact that he has only one year left on his contract.
Barça preparing fresh Offer
According to SPORT, Barcelona have already stretched their proposal to the limit.
The €60 million fixed fee plus €10 million in variables failed to convince City, who rejected the offer late on Wednesday. However, the negotiations remain open.
The Catalan giants are now working on what they consider theirs definitive proposal. Barça have the full backing of Rodri, who has also asked the Cityzens to facilitate his departure because he wants to leave the Premier League.
Final offer incoming. (Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
The report indicates that Barça’s final offer could reach €65 million fixed plus €10 million in variables.
Of those variables, around €5 million would be relatively achievable, while the remaining €5 million would be considerably harder to trigger.
That proposal could be enough to finally convince Manchester City to accept. Barcelona hope to put it on the table within hours and reach an agreement that would allow Rodri to avoid travelling back to Manchester.
Rodri does not want to return to Manchester
Rodri is currently expected to return to Manchester on Friday, but his preference is to travel directly to Barcelona if an agreement can be reached before then.
The midfielder knows that Barça are making a major financial effort to sign him and has responded by making concessions in his own contract.
Rodri wants to join Barcelona. (Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images)
He has given up certain amounts that Real Madrid were prepared to pay him, reinforcing the idea that his decision is based primarily on sporting and personal reasons.
His involvement could prove decisive in the final stage of negotiations.
Man City preparing for Rodri’s departure
Manchester City may still insist publicly that they would be happy to keep Rodri for the final year of his contract, but their transfer activity suggests they are already preparing for life without him.
The English giants are negotiating for midfield reinforcements, including Ayyoub Bouaddi and Enzo Fernandez, moves that would help compensate for the departure of the Spanish international.
For Barcelona, the negotiations have proved tougher than initially expected. Even so, the gap between the two clubs is now considered small enough for an agreement to be reached at any moment.