Barcelona’s sporting director Deco has opened up on the signing of Rodri this summer, explaining that it wasn’t part of the club’s initial plans but they made the move after seeing a real opportunity to sign the player.
Rodri finally completed his much-anticipated move to Barcelona this week, signing a four-year deal that will keep him at the Spotify Camp Nou until the summer of 2030. The transfer cost the Blaugrana €60 million upfront, with an additional €15 million in add-ons, sending the total cost to €75 million.
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When asked about the decision to sign the player, Deco explained how the Catalan giants quickly moved to make the deal happen despite not having it in their plans initially.
“It wasn’t part of our plans,” he said in quotes conveyed by Barca Universal. “We’re pleased. Before signing him, we talked and discussed it at length.”
“At first it wasn’t part of our plans, but we saw that it was an opportunity. He’ll improve the team considerably.”
Rodri was heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid this summer before Barcelona stepped in to declare their interest. Many believe that the Blaugrana intentionally did that to score a point over their bitter rivals but Deco insists that isn’t true.
“We haven’t snatched him from Madrid,” the Portuguese stated emphatically.
Rodri was presented as a Barcelona player ahead of the Joan Gamper trophy clash with Egyptian club Al Ahly yesterday (August 19). The midfielder received a warm reception at the Spotify Camp Nou, with the Blaugrana faithful welcoming him with cheers and applause.
Barcelona set for 2026-27 LaLiga season
The Catalan giants rounded up their preseason campaign with a 2-1 victory over Al Ahly to lift the Joan Gamper trophy yesterday. Following that, they will now turn their attention to the new LaLiga season with all hands on deck.
While the league kicked off last Saturday, the Blaugrana will have to wait till this weekend before returning to action due to a schedule change that gave extra rest to players who competed in the latter stages of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Barca will play their first game against Elche on Sunday, August 23. They will then take on Athletic Club four days later before going on to meet the likes of Rayo Vallecano, Valencia and Levante in their next three games. It remains to be seen if they can earn a perfect start to the campaign by winning all five fixtures.
Edited by Nived Zenith