Rodri has been linked to Real Madrid as a possible defensive midfield signing for months, and he himself even told reporters at an international break with the Spanish national team in the spring that he dreams of a big move to the Santiago Bernabeu despite once playing for Atletico Madrid (and snubbing Vinicius Junior for the Ballon d'Or, though he quickly buried that hatchet).
With just one year left on his contract, Rodri is a sensible signing for Real Madrid to immediately upgrade their midfield, as they have lacked control of games since Toni Kroos's retirement at his peak performance in 2024. Rodri ran circle around the starting No. 6 Real Madrid just extended, Aurelien Tchouameni, as Spain dominated France 2-0 in the World Cup Semifinals, and then he gave Enzo Fernandez even harsher treatment in Spain's clean sheet win over a rascal Argentina in the World Cup Final.
Real Madrid fans would have thought that Rodri securing the official World Cup Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament in leading Spain to another trophy would have gotten the Merengues to change their minds, but there is still no movement in the Rodri case.
Florentino Perez is still blocking Rodri
Now, Fabrizio Romano is confirming the bad Rodri news that Real Madrid fans were always afraid of. According to the biggest transfer news reporter in the business, it is still the Real Madrid president Florentino Perez himself who is blocking the Rodri move. He is the one and only reason why Rodri is not coming to the Santiago Bernabeu this summer.
Romano said, via the Madrid Zone, "Rodri really dreams of joining Real Madrid. He would love to go to Real Madrid. He wants to return to Spain and to Madrid. However, Florentino Perez is not convinced and his decision right now is to not move for Rodri. The only thing blocking Rodri from joining Madrid is Florentino Pérez."
It is a bombshell of a report, but it is, sadly, no surprise to Real Madrid fans based on what has been said in the Spanish media for months. There may be a couple of personal reasons for Florentino's stance, which otherwise does not make much sense from a footballing perspective when you look at Rodri's quality and what Real needs.
Florentino Perez took Rodri winning the Ballon d'Or over Vinicius Junior very personally. Rodri also used to play for Atletico Madrid. And finally, Rodri was Enrique Riquelme's personal pick for a Real Madrid transfer. These reasons sound silly, but Florentino does have black and white thinking at times; they may be behind his stubborn stance.
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