Manchester City’s Rodri has issued a strong hint with regards to his future intentions and retirement plans within the game, focussing solely on the Etihad Stadium.

The 28-year-old is seemingly on a global tour of celebrating his historic Ballon d’Or success confirmed last month, and who can blame him? The Manchester City star became the first defensive midfielder to take home the prize of best footballer on the planet since 1990.

As a result, Rodri is conducting a number of media commitments, interviews, podcasts, and activities to mark his status as the new best player in the world, while subjects of discussion have been varied depending on broadcaster.

One conversation held in Spain in recent weeks has seen Rodri discuss the possibility of retiring at Manchester City, as well as whether there is any chance of a return to Spanish football but over to the other side of the capital city of Madrid.

Speaking during a new interview with Cadena SER in Spain, as translated and relayed by Sport Witness, Rodri explained that while he does not usually set “very long-term goals” in football, there remains a “possibility” that he could end his career as a City player.

Rodri said, “I’m not one to set myself very long-term goals, I’m going day by day, but it could be a possibility to end up there. I love football in England, the club is amazing, not only on a sporting level, but also on a structural level.”

He continued, “I’m very comfortable and feel very much loved, but Spain is my country. I’m keeping an eye on La Liga, the level of the teams is growing… I’ve been lucky enough to play in both competitions, to have the best coaches and in that sense I’m very happy.”

Rodri remains at the centre of some level of contractual uncertainty at the Etihad Stadium, with his existing deal running until the summer of 2027, and Manchester City holding a firm desire to renegotiate terms.

The Spain international’s existing contract means that as things stand, he would become a free agent during the same summer that Pep Guardiola is now expected to leave the Etihad Stadium, as well as Erling Haaland and a number of other senior first-team players.

However, it is highly unlikely that Rodri will reach the point of his contract expiring, and Manchester City fans can expect to see developments around the midfielder’s future over the course of the next few months.