Rodri on Choosing Barcelona Over Real Madrid: A Tough Decision

Rodri has finally broken his silence on the summer saga that saw him turn down the Bernabeu for Camp Nou, admitting the choice between Spain’s two giants turned his holidays into anything but a break.

“The first thing I have to say is that I would have liked it to have been two or three weeks of quiet vacation and they were not at all,” he told MD, describing a restless summer dominated by calls, meetings and doubt.

Madrid pushed hard. For much of the window, they were considered clear favourites to land the midfielder. The club made strong efforts to convince him, and he acknowledges they did almost everything right.

“Many things had to be analysed, and such an important decision had to be made with two of the best clubs in the world,” he said. “In the end I made a decision on the sporting level, so it gave me a little more desire and to understand where I could win and grow more as a player.”

That was the key. Not money. Not politics. Football.

“It was not an easy decision at all, saying no to Madrid is not easy, and above all that, they behaved exemplarily with me. In the end, Deco and Hansi convinced me.”

The pull of Deco’s project and Hansi Flick’s plans tipped the balance. Barcelona, in Rodri’s eyes, offered the clearer path for his development and ambitions on the pitch. Madrid, despite their prestige and persistence, lost out to the sporting argument.

Mourinho’s role – and a respectful rejection

At the heart of Madrid’s pursuit stood Jose Mourinho. The Real Madrid head coach spoke directly with Rodri, outlining how he would fit and what he could bring to the team. The conversations left a mark.

“I don't think it's his thing to reveal a private conversation, but he obviously expressed his desire for me to join, and he told me what I could bring to the team. The treatment was very good,” Rodri explained.

He didn’t just disappear when the decision went Barcelona’s way. He picked up the phone.

“When I made the decision, I also called him to thank him for his interest and treatment. I think he's a great coach, he's already shown it wherever he's gone in his great stages and Real Madrid are going to be a tough opponent for this league.”

There is no bitterness in his words, only respect. Mourinho pushed, Madrid tried, Rodri chose differently.

Ballon d’Or boycott “not a factor”

One storyline refused to go away over the summer: Real Madrid’s decision to boycott his 2024 Ballon d'Or victory. The timing of that controversy and his transfer battle with Madrid sparked inevitable speculation.

Rodri cut that link off sharply. He made it very clear that the club’s stance on his Ballon d'Or win played no part in his thinking. For him, the choice came down to where he believed he could “win and grow more as a player.”

So the saga ends with a simple truth. Madrid chased, Barcelona closed, and Rodri backed the project he felt would stretch him the most.

The next chapter? Facing Mourinho’s Madrid in a league where every touch between them will carry the weight of the decision he made this summer.