Spain’s World Cup-winning captain has completed his move to Camp Nou where he is a natural successor to club legend
By the time Flight PTN27B started its descent into El Prat a bit before 8pm on Monday evening, a small crowd had gathered by the terminal doors, waiting for it to land. A few people stood and watched the sky, cameras out to capture its arrival. A lot more watched on their phones. In the two hours it had taken to get there from Manchester, taking off at 5.11pm, 101 minutes behind schedule, the Pilatus PC-24 had become the most tracked plane on the planet. Everyone knew that Rodrigo Hernández was on board. Unless, of course, he had been sneaked away in a catering cart.
Five days earlier, Rodri had been seen, and recorded, at Barajas airport waiting to get on a flight back to Manchester from Madrid. He wheeled a small RFEF (Spanish football federation) case with his name on, stood alone in the queue, the World Cup winning-captain just a bloke in shorts and T-shirt, and his stay in the UK was supposed to be brief, just long enough to say goodbye. The plane he was boarding was a Ryanair one: that was the detail everyone homed in on, something extraordinary in the ordinariness. This time, though, he came on a private jet, one way. His family travelled with him. He came to sign for FC Barcelona.
Rodri was late: an agreement between Manchester City and Barcelona had taken a little longer than expected, long enough for concern to creep in, and his flight landed 70 minutes behind schedule. Maybe he is late-late, too: at 30, and three years after the departure of Sergio Busquets – the man to whom he had always been likened and whose natural successor he has always been … this transfer could perhaps have come sooner. Yet it was rarely even contemplated, virtually up until the moment it happened. In that sense, it had actually been quick. A fortnight ago, few thought of this.
Now here he was, heading out in jeans and a white T-shirt. There was expectation, a hint still of disbelief that they had got him. A touch of relief, too, after the delay. They had been “intense days” Rodri said, but now it was done. Barcelona’s third bid had been accepted: €60m plus a further €15m in add-ons, €11m of which are virtually guaranteed. He will earn around €15m a year, an increase on his salary at City, and has signed a four-year deal.
The Spain midfielder Rodri has completed his £65.4m move from Manchester City, signing a four-year contract after undergoing a medical on Tuesday.
'Barcelona and Manchester City have reached an agreement for Rodri, who is committing to the Catalan club until 30 June 2030,' read a club statement.
Barça added that the 30-year-old is 'considered one of the best players in the world in his position', and 'stands out for his tactical intelligence, composure on the ball, ability to regain possession and precision in his passing'.
Rodri (pictured) was named the best player of the World Cup after Spain’s triumph this summer. He spent seven seasons at the Etihad Stadium, winning the Premier League four times and scoring the winner in the 2023 Champions League final against Internazionale. The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner joined from Atlético Madrid in July 2019, and was in the final year of his contract.
In a message to City fans on the club’s website, Rodri wrote: 'I found that saying goodbye is one of the most difficult things in life but I am going to try. I knew I came into a top team but I never thought we could be able to create the legacy we made – winning trophies, fans around the world, love and respect.'
'We made an example to inspire the next generations not only because the success, also because the way we did it,' he added. 'And the fans were with us every step of the way. City didn’t just make me grow as a player. They made me grow as a human … Manchester shaped my whole life. It’s time to say goodbye, thanks to the club, the fans, the staff and my teammates. This journey couldn’t be the same without you, my heart will always be blue.'
Barcelona saw an initial £40m offer and an increased bid turned down before an agreement was struck on Sunday. Rodri flew to Barcelona’s El Prat airport on Monday and told reporters: 'Playing for Barcelona is a dream come true for me.'
The new City manager, Enzo Maresca, faces a race to rebuild his midfield, with Rodri joining Bernardo Silva in departing the club, Tijjani Reijnders poised to join Saudi Pro League side Al Qadsiah, and Newcastle reportedly interested in Nico González. Elliot Anderson has joined from Nottingham Forest for £116m and City have been linked with Lille’s Ayyoub Bouaddi and Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez.
“I’m happy to be here,” Rodri said, and they were happy to have him. The following morning he arrived at the club’s Joan Despí training ground to complete his medical, everything signed off. As he left the terminal building, Rodri had been asked if this was a dream come true. He of course said yes it was, which he had to say. The question had been direct, leading. It had been loaded too.
A Ballon d’Or winner and the embodiment of a style, an identity, that is theirs too, Rodri is the perfect fit. The time was right for him too. Voted the best player at the World Cup, the culmination of his recovery from injury, there was just one year left on his contract at City. He had won it all in England and Pep Guardiola had gone. After seven years away, home called. But home didn’t mean Barcelona; in fact, it had seemed more likely to mean Real Madrid.
