Barcelona Pursue Rodri as Real Madrid's Confidence Wanes

For weeks, Real Madrid walked around this transfer saga as if the deal was already in their pocket. Personal terms agreed with the 2026 World Cup Golden Ball winner, a clear path to the Bernabeu, and the feeling that no other club could really compete.

That illusion is starting to crumble.

According to The Athletic, Barcelona have opened talks with Rodri’s camp, and the player is said to be genuinely drawn to the idea of playing under Hansi Flick. The conversations are not just exploratory; negotiations with Manchester City are also underway, and if the English champions give the go-ahead, Barça are ready to accelerate and try to close the deal.

The pressure has shifted. And it has shifted fast.

ESPN’s Rodra now reports that within the Bernabeu offices, confidence has drained away. Real Madrid no longer believe they are favourites to land Rodri this summer. The internal mood has moved from expectation to resignation, with senior figures beginning to accept that the midfielder may not arrive at all.

If that happens, the door swings wide open for Barcelona. Not only would they secure a cornerstone for Flick’s project, they would do it at the direct expense of Florentino Perez and his long-term planning. In the politics of Spanish football, that sort of blow lands hard and lingers.

Mourinho’s midfield plan under threat

Jose Mourinho has been blunt since the moment he walked back through the Bernabeu doors: he wants a new defensive midfielder. Not a luxury piece, a pillar. Someone to anchor his side for the 2026-27 season and beyond.

Right now, he fully trusts only Aurelien Tchouameni, Federico Valverde and Arda Guler in that central area. After missing out on Enzo Fernandez, Rodri had become the ideal solution — a ready-made leader in front of the defence, a player shaped by Manchester City’s high demands and crowned on the biggest international stage.

Losing him would sting in any context. Losing him to Barcelona would cut far deeper.

For Real Madrid, this is no longer just a question of filling a position. It is about momentum, about the message they send at the start of Mourinho’s new cycle. For Barcelona, it is the chance to reshape their midfield around a world-class anchor and to land a symbolic punch on their greatest rivals at a delicate moment.

Madrid remain in the race, at least on paper. But as the talks with Barcelona advance and City’s stance edges towards a decision, the balance of power in this transfer battle looks increasingly clear.

If Rodri walks out at the Camp Nou in a Barcelona shirt, the question will not be how Madrid lost him — it will be how quickly Mourinho and Perez can recover from a blow of that magnitude.