FC Barcelona director Deco claims he didn't "snatch" Rodri away from Real Madrid

XtraTime Newsweek: Barcelona's sports director Deco has denied that the club snatched Rodri from Real Madrid after acquiring the Spain captain as their new headline acquisition. Barcelona confirmed the acquisition of Rodri from Manchester City on August 18, bringing the World Cup 2026 Golden Ball winner to Camp Nou on a contract that runs until June 2030.

Rodri is leaving as he enters the final season of his current contract with City, and the club moved fast to sign the midfielder. The 30-year-old joined Hansi Flick's team after Barcelona accepted a reported cost of £65.4 million ($88.56 million) for his services.

Real Madrid was interested in signing Rodri immediately following the World Cup and made an offer to the midfielder. However, after Barcelona entered the picture, Rodri opted to give them precedence. Many believed Barca had hijacked the agreement, but Deco stated that this was not the case.

We haven’t snatched him from Madrid,” said Deco, as quoted by Barca Universal

Rodri joins a strong midfield that contains the likes of Gavi, Pedri, Fermin and Frenkie de Jong. Despite this, Barca decided to splash the cash on the Spain captain and bring him in.

Deco admitted that initially, Rodri wasn't part of their plans but decided to pounce on the opportunity when it presented itself.

“We’re pleased. Before signing him, we talked and discussed it at length. At first it wasn’t part of our plans, but we saw that it was an opportunity. He’ll improve the team considerably.”

There is still conjecture about Barcelona's next move, particularly at the striker position. They lost Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres over the offseason.

Deco intimated that they will make a significant play for a forward before the window closes.

"There’s a lot of speculation, but we’re going to make a move.”

“We have options within the squad, but we have to keep looking,” said Deco.