Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca acknowledges the club must try to find the new Rodri after the Spain captain completed a move to Barcelona for a fee in the region of £65m.
The departure of Rodri from the Etihad Stadium marks the end of a glittering seven-season tenure that saw the midfielder establish himself among the global elite. Having claimed the 2024 Ballon d’Or award, secured four Premier League titles, and scored the decisive goal in the 2023 Champions League final, his exit leaves a massive void in the heart of Manchester City’s midfield. The Spain captain added a World Cup triumph to his resume over the summer before signing a four-year contract at the Nou Camp.
Rebuilding the Midfield After a Club Legend Departs
Maresca faces an immediate tactical dilemma as the club enters the final stretch of the transfer window. With Rodri having played nearly 300 games for City and reaching the final 12 months of his contract without agreeing to an extension, the manager is tasked with orchestrating a succession plan.
Enzo Maresca stated via BBC Sport that to solve that problem, they would try to find the new Rodri because that is simply how things are.
The City boss drew historical parallels to ease concerns, pointing out that past departures of iconic figures always paved the way for new stars. When David Silva left, Kevin De Bruyne arrived; when Sergio Aguero’s tenure wound down, Erling Haaland stepped in. Maresca noted that before Rodri arrived, he had not yet won his Ballon d’Or, the Champions League, or the Club World Cup, suggesting that the next pillar of the squad is out there waiting to be recruited.
Targets and Valuation Battles in the Transfer Market
City’s recruitment team is already operating at a frantic pace with the summer window shutting in 11 days. The club already completed a club-record £115m fee for England international midfielder Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest, but filling Rodri’s precise role requires further additions.
The primary target to anchor the midfield is Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez, an Argentina international valued at around £120M who reached the 2026 World Cup final with his country. Former Chelsea and England winger Joe Cole believes Fernandez is perfect for the job, though he notes the negotiations will likely stretch to the deadline and that replacing Rodri might require two top-quality players like Anderson and Fernandez.
Joe Cole noted via Paddy Power that this Enzo saga would definitely drag on because it involves a player who wants to move and is desired by multiple clubs, and since both parties have staked their positions, it appeared to him to be purely about money now.
Alongside the Fernandez pursuit, City remain in advanced talks to sign Lille’s Moroccan star Ayyoub Bouaddi. The club has also not given up hope of signing Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez while maintaining interest in Bournemouth’s Alex Scott and Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister, though an enquiry for Crystal Palace’s 22-year-old Adam Wharton was turned down as he is not for sale.
Squad Adaptation and the Final Days of the Window
Maresca acknowledged that managing a squad through the final days of the market involves navigating player restlessness alongside incoming arrivals. While Tottenham have agreed a £75m fee to sign Brazilian winger Savinho and are also in talks to acquire City team-mate Omar Marmoush, City must balance their own outgoing desires with strict squad reinforcement.
With clubs across the Premier League holding out until the final week to sell for more money, Maresca insists his side must adapt to the turbulence. Whether the recruitment team can land their targets to successfully engineer a post-Rodri era remains the defining question before the window closes in 11 days time.
