Rodrigo Hernandez - Atletico confirm deal - p192

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Been watching him for the last week or so whilst doing other shit (as I did with Jorginho and have basically been proven right about him - so a 100% success rate ;) )

1st thing I'd say is that it's better to watch him playing for Spain or even Villarreal, where he plays more as a 6, than it is for Atletico, where he plays in a midfield 2 in a 442. There's also the style of football differences (Atletico are actually a tough watch tbh). Playing for Atletico he doesn't get the ball when he should, or at least would if he was playing for us.

From what I've seen, the Busquets comparisons are largely fair. Tho obviously Rodri is a long way behind Busquets, particularly prime Busquets, but being so young he clearly has time and room to improve, and Pep is the perfect coach for him. Whilst it'd be wrong to say it's hard not to think he's wasting time at Atletico under Simeone, obviously he can learn alot about the defensive side of the game there, long term he needs a purest like Pep to reach his full potential.

It's hard to talk about him really because he seems to be good at pretty much everything - tho, as already mentioned, he has room to improve. He's very tall yet more mobile than you'd expect someone his height to be. He's a clever passer, and a progressive one when given the chance (Atletico setup not ideal in this regard), defensively, he wins most duels.

The one slight doubt I have is in his ability (or lack hereof) of "course-correcting" his movements. ie. when he commits to a tackle or closing down he can be taken out of the game momentarily if not successful. Might not be explaining it the best I can but Fernandinho, for example, can commit to a tackle but if unsuccessful can immediately nick the ball at a 2nd attempt when the opponent has changed direction. Defensively Rodri might be a bit more Matic than Dinho. Wins a high % of his duels but may not have the ability to attempt as many. Might be abit harsh here as I've only watched about 6 games but whatever. He does seem a very intelligent player so maybe more Carrick than Matic?

Every other DM we have been linked to has at least one really obvious flaw. And even in someone like Ndombele, who is clearly excellent at something in particular (ball carrying), I'm not sure how much we'd benefit given the role of a 6. Neves' shooting ability could be an immense help against parked buses but he has an obvious mobility issue to play on his own in our midfield.
Our needs aren't based on signing the most eye catching player. We already have those. It's about the right fit.

Overall, Rodri is a good player who could probably do a good job straight away rotating with Dinho (who imo could still play a big role for quite a while yet, the lad is a built like a whippet), what I'm more excited about is what he could become.
As a result I think his release fee of £59m is expensive right now but in a few years time could be seen as a superb bit of business even if the market stayed as it is now.
If the club is confident in him we should just pay it and get him in. I hope they're in contact with FIFA about the ban because we can't do shit until they charge us, which has surely got to come soon or next season as they can't think it reasonable to foist it on us a few weeks before the window opens...

Interesting analysis. Thanks for taking the time to type all that out!

I do think some fans have it in their minds we need someone who is already world class because Fernandinho is. But as you said, Fern will be here next year without a shadow of a doubt. Rodri could learn from Fern next season so that he's ready to be undisputed first choice come 2020-21. I definitely think there's an extra appeal for Txiki looking at targets from Spain, being that if you find one with a relatively feasible release clause, you don't have to worry about a bidding war or clubs holding out for as much as possible. Get the player on board and cut the cheque.
 
Rodri's compilation from his Villarreal days, which is more far more relevant to City style than Atletico comps
 
Given performances of late we should be thinking of backup for Gundogan as opposed to Fernandinho replacement, Gundo has assumed that role.
 
Yep I missed kickoff and pregame and didn't even notice Gundwagon was in until about the 11th minute. He played better later but he's simply not the Fern replacement everyone says he has been.
 
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