Rodri snubs Barcelona as Vinicius Jr continues to flirt with London

Football superstar Rodri has emerged as a hot topic in Spain lately, with many expecting the Manchester City superstar to return to his homeland after a successful World Cup campaign, where he won the Golden Ball.

Rodri is already on the radar of both Barcelona and Real Madrid, with Los Blancos, in particular, keen on acquiring his services.

Barcelona are interested as well, and it appears Manchester City are deliberately delaying talks with Real Madrid so that the Catalans can enter the bidding war.

Despite Barcelona’s interest, however, it is unlikely the club will be able to snap up Rodri this summer.

According to Diario AS, Rodri is unfazed by interest from Barcelona. His only desire is to return to his home city of Madrid and join Real Madrid.

If he is to leave Man City, Real Madrid remain the favourite destination, and Barcelona is not something on his mind right now.

This is despite the fact that the Spaniard has shown excellent understanding with most of the Barcelona players in the Spain team, including Dani Olmo, Pau Cubarsi, Lamine Yamal and Pedri.

Not to mention, Rodri has a history with Real Madrid following the 2024 Ballon d’Or, where Vinicius Jr. was famously snubbed, leading to Madrid fans showing animosity towards Rodri.

As far as Barcelona are concerned, Rodri is not among the club’s priorities either.

While Frenkie de Jong’s injury has prompted them to look for a new midfielder in the market, their current focus is to complete the deal to sign Joao Cancelo and bring in a replacement for Robert Lewandowski.

Julian Alvarez remains the primary focus, and given that Barcelona already have a hefty sum in the market, it is unlikely that they will be able to afford Rodri, who is valued at around €75 million.

Everything, therefore, suggests Rodri might join Real Madrid this summer, provided he leaves Manchester City and doesn’t renew his contract at the Etihad.

Elsewhere, there has been increasing speculation surrounding Vinicius Junior’s future as a Real Madrid player. With less than a year remaining on his contract, talks over a new deal are set to resume soon, although there is no guarantee that a positive outcome is reached – and waiting in the wings is Arsenal.

The Premier League champions sense an opportunity to sign Vinicius, whom Real Madrid will look to sell if they cannot agree a new contract with the Brazil international. They are ready to make their move once encouragement has been given by the 26-year-old’s camp, with talks having already taken place between the two parties.

And now, more negotiations are seemingly about to take place with a view to reaching an agreement on personal terms. Vinicius is represented by Roc Nation, and as per Diario AS, their president Michael Yormark posted on Instagram over the weekend that he was travelling to London, with the caption “London, here I go. Let’s go!”

The emergence of Arsenal’s interest has given Vinicius and his representatives leverage ahead of their showdown talks with Real Madrid. An eye-watering offer has already been tabled by last season’s beaten Champions League finalists, and the likelihood is that Los Blancos will be asked to match it – or even better it – if they are to secure a renewal agreement in the coming weeks.

However, this tactic does not look like it is working on Real Madrid. They have already informed Vinicius’ camp that the offer on the table is the best one they will get, and if it is not accepted, a sale will be sought this summer. If that happens, Arsenal would be ready to make their move, although they will have to wait until a definitive resolution comes.