Manchester City have made few better signings in their history than the capture of Rodri back in July 2019.
Txiki Begiristain moved to trigger the Spanish midfielder’s £62.8m release clause six years ago to this very day, luring the 23-year-old from Atletico Madrid to hand Pep Guardiola one of the most precocious talents around.
Now 29, it is safe to say Rodri has repaid that fee and then some, helping Manchester City win four Premier League titles, one FA Cup, two League Cups, the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup and the FA Community Shield – while also winning the most prestigious individual award a footballer can in the Ballon d’Or.
As Manchester City celebrate the sixth anniversary of the Spaniard’s arrival, let’s take a look at how supporters reacted when the deal was announced back in July 2019.
Manchester City fans saw the future in 2019 with their Rodri predictions
Manchester City fans tipped the Spain international for big things upon his arrival at the Etihad Stadium, and they were spot on.
One simply wrote “what a signing” after seeing that Manchester City had announced Rodri, before the comments became even more eerily accurate.
Another posted on X (previously known as Twitter) at the time: “(We) finally have (a) Fernandinho replacement. (The) Prem (is) really done already.”
Ironically, Rodri did not actually help Manchester City win the Premier League title in his first season – Liverpool lifted the trophy that term – but he did then go on to celebrate the next four in a row, something no other English club had ever achieved.
A third Manchester City fan referenced how close Begiristain came to signing Jorginho 12 months before Rodri – who Alan Shearer is worried about – arrived, but the Italy international opted for Chelsea instead.
Guardiola said: “We were close but in the end Jorginho decided to stay with Sarri.
“I want players who want to come here. He didn’t want that. We tried, we believed it was done but at the last turn he decided on Chelsea.”
Jorginho is now playing for Flamengo, whereas Rodri arguably remains the best central midfielder on the planet, so it was a fantastic reaction from Begiristain to turn to Atletico Madrid.
Interestingly, a fourth Manchester City supporter backed Rodri to become another Sergio Busquets for Guardiola – who was a key cog in his juggernaut of a Barcelona side – posting: “Really looking forward to watching Rodri play.
“He will be the Busquets type player that Pep always wanted at City.”
It is safe to say the £62.8m investment has been an excellent use of resources – to say the very least.
Manchester City fans must be patient with Rodri
After a disappointing 2024/25 campaign which ended without silverware, Manchester City fans will be desperate to see the current holder of the Ballon d’Or back to his best.
However, Rodri struggled in the 4-3 defeat against Al Hilal at the FIFA Club World Cup, and is quite clearly still working his way back to full fitness after a serious knee injury.
The last thing the man from Madrid needs is for any pressure to be added on his shoulders, so hopefully, he gets the full support of Guardiola, his teammates and the Etihad Stadium faithful in the infancy of the 2025/26 season.
