Rodri, fresh from captaining Spain to World Cup glory and collecting the Golden Ball, may now require surgery on a back injury that is set to rule him out for the start of the season. The 30-year-old Manchester City midfielder returned to his finest form at the tournament, leading Spain to a 1-0 final win over Argentina in New Jersey on Sunday. Yet the back problem threatens to derail his momentum after two injury-plagued seasons that began with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium in September 2024. That ruled him out for most of that campaign, and further hamstring and groin injuries last season meant he started only 17 Premier League matches. “For me, it’s been a very tough time,” Rodri said after the World Cup victory. “I just want the new generations to see my example as an opportunity. When you go down, you can rise again.” His future at City is uncertain with his contract expiring next June, and while he favours a transfer to Real Madrid, they are yet to make a concrete move. New manager Enzo Maresca hopes to keep him.
In stark contrast, James Milner has ended his career on his own terms. The 40-year-old, who broke the Premier League appearance record in February while playing for Brighton against Brentford, retires with 658 top-tier games for six clubs and 61 England caps. His journey began at Leeds as the league’s youngest scorer at 16 years and 356 days, and included spells at Newcastle, Aston Villa, Manchester City – where he won two Premier League titles – and Liverpool, with whom he added the Champions League. After 24 seasons, he wrote on Instagram: “I could never have dreamed of the journey I’ve been on.” Milner’s professionalism was hailed by former manager Manuel Pellegrini as “the most complete player in England”, and he even learned Spanish to communicate better with teammates.
“Rodri may require surgery after back injury, while James Milner retires as Premier League appearance record holder.”
Meanwhile, Leeds are in advanced talks to sign goalkeeper James Trafford from City for a fee in the region of £50m. The 23-year-old rejoined City from Burnley last summer for £27m expecting to be first choice, but lost the position to Gianluigi Donnarumma. Trafford started City’s Carabao Cup final victory over Arsenal in March and the FA Cup final win over Chelsea in May.