Barcelona continues to advance in the deal to sign Rodri, Manchester City's star, despite all parties involved still proceeding with caution, in light of no final agreement having been reached yet.
Barcelona has already submitted its second offer to sign the player, while Manchester City is asking for 80 million euros.
The newspaper Sport published statements by City's coach Enzo Maresca, where he said "At the moment, it seems that Rodri will be in Manchester next Wednesday".
Maresca's statement reflects the player's current contractual situation, as long as Rodri's transfer has not been fully settled, he remains a player in his English club's ranks, and therefore he must adhere to the pre-determined program.
Maresca's position seems logical, as the Italian coach defends his team's interests and relies on the player, as long as he is officially still part of Man City's squad.
As for what may happen in the coming hours, that is another matter, if Barcelona and the English club can finalize the last details in the negotiations that saw progress over the weekend.
In Barcelona's ranks, the last days have been specifically exploited to take additional steps towards the player's arrival.
The Catalan club's desire is to accelerate Rodri's deal to the greatest extent possible, so that the new arrival can join Hans Flick's system as quickly as possible, who wants his services almost immediately.
The German coach's goal is for Rodri to be present on August 12 in the Joan Gamper sports city, a date that forces all parties to try to settle the deal quickly if they want the player to join training without further delay.
This does not mean that the agreement has already been settled, as sources familiar with the negotiations had called for calm last Friday, specifically because there are still some matters that need to be resolved before considering the deal fully complete.
For this reason, Maresca's statements should not necessarily be interpreted as a change in the scene or an obstruction of the deal, as they simply describe the reality of the current moment.
Once the final green light is obtained, the time will also come for the player to bid farewell to the city of Manchester and head to Barcelona.
