Manchester City demands £70 million for Rodri as Barcelona's offers fall short

Manchester City maintains a firm £70 million asking price for Rodri and has turned down Barcelona's opening bid of £55 million with £5 million in add-ons. According to Jeremy Cross, the club is comfortable retaining the midfielder for the upcoming season and would prefer to lose him on a free transfer when his contract expires. Barcelona, having shown willingness to spend on other targets such as Julian Alvarez, submitted a second offer that still falls below City’s requirement.

The Spanish side's earlier €100 million bid for Alvarez was rejected by Atletico Madrid, indicating they have resources but have not matched City’s demand for Rodri. City’s stance leaves the player’s potential return to Spain dependent on Barcelona meeting the set fee.