Barcelona Pursue Rodri and Álvarez as Transfer Deadline Approaches

Barcelona are not blinking. With a little over two weeks left in the summer window, the club remain locked on two names – Rodri and Julian Alvarez – and, according to Mundo Deportivo, are convinced both deals can still be pushed over the line.

Inside the sporting department, there is no talk of Plan B. No parallel shortlist. No late-market scramble. The message is clear: it’s Rodri for midfield, Alvarez for the attack, or nothing.

Rodri deal moves into decisive phase

Of the two operations, Rodri is the one gathering the most speed.

The Spain international has reported back to Manchester City after his summer break, but Barcelona are working on the assumption that his mind is already drifting towards Hansi Flick’s project. Their confidence rests heavily on that desire. They believe he wants the move and that this will eventually drag the negotiations their way.

Money, as ever with City, is the problem.

The Premier League champions are holding out for a package in the region of €80 million. Barcelona know their second offer fell short and accept they must return with an improved proposal. Matching City’s demands outright is not on the table. The Catalan board are instead preparing a structure loaded with bonuses and add-ons, a deal that could creep towards €70m if all conditions are met.

City have already turned down previous approaches and are waiting for that new bid. For now, they hold the stronger hand, but the player’s future is still unresolved and the window is closing fast.

Inside the Camp Nou offices, there is a clear internal timeline. Mundo Deportivo report that Barcelona expect the Rodri operation to be settled – one way or another – by next week. They want clarity, and they want it quickly.

Alvarez, Simeone and a transfer tug-of-war

If Rodri feels like a negotiation, Julian Alvarez feels like a standoff.

Here the obstacle is not Manchester City, but Atletico Madrid. The capital club have taken a hard line on the Argentine striker and have shown no willingness to soften it. Every step has been more complicated than the Rodri talks.

Barcelona, though, are hanging onto one key factor: Alvarez’s own determination to wear the Blaugrana shirt.

At 26, the forward is expected to keep pushing for an exit in the coming days, still searching for a path from Atletico to Camp Nou. He has already tried to bring Diego Simeone into the conversation in the hope that the coach might help ease his departure. That attempt has gone nowhere. Atletico’s stance has not shifted.

His ambition has not shifted either.

Right now, the player’s will is the hinge on which the entire operation swings. Barcelona are betting that sustained pressure from Alvarez can eventually alter the mood in Madrid, or at least force Atletico to listen to a different kind of offer.

For Flick, the equation is simple: land Rodri to anchor his midfield and Alvarez to sharpen his forward line, and the shape of his first Barcelona side changes overnight. The club believe the players want that same future. The question is whether City and Atletico can be dragged into it before the window slams shut.