Rodri Set to Join Barcelona with Number 16 Shirt Confirmed

Barcelona are on the brink of unveiling Rodri as their newest midfield pillar, with the club having reached a full agreement with Manchester City for the Spain international.

The deal is set at 60 million euros as a fixed fee, with a further 16 million tied to incentives and variables, according to aligned reports. Rodri will sign a four-year contract and earn more than 13 million euros net per season, a salary that immediately places him among the highest-paid players in the Barcelona dressing room.

The financial package underlines how heavily Barcelona are betting on him. So does the shirt on his back.

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Rodri specifically requested the number 16 shirt for his Barcelona adventure, the same number he has worn throughout his career at Manchester City and with the Spanish national team. To make that happen, he needed a favour from inside the squad.

He got it.

Fermin Lopez, the current holder of the 16, agreed to step aside. As reported by Romano on his X account, the young midfielder is preparing to switch to the number 7 shirt, clearing the way for Rodri to keep the number that has become part of his identity.

The gesture smooths Rodri’s landing in Catalonia and quietly signals his status in the new project. When Barcelona make the transfer official in the coming hours, they are also expected to confirm his number.

All signs point in the same direction: Rodri, in blaugrana, with the 16 on his back at the Spotify Camp Nou, ready to anchor Barcelona’s next era.