Fabrizio Romano confirms shock twist in €70m Chelsea transfer

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed reports from Spain that Real Madrid superstar Rodrygo has torn his ACL, which is a devastating blow for Chelsea and his other suitors.

The Brazil international went down injured within minutes of coming on as a substitute in Real Madrid’s embarrassing 1-0 home loss to Getafe on Monday evening. Despite being in obvious discomfort, Rodrygo finished the match, playing 35 minutes.

His injury, however, has now turned out to be worse than initially feared. First reported by MARCA and now confirmed by Fabrizio Romano, the 25-year-old has torn his ACL.

It means that Rodrygo’s season is over and that he will not feature for his country at the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. It would have been the winger’s second World Cup after 2022.

This is a heartbreaking turn of events for a player who has endured a catastrophic 12 months. After impressing in the early stages of last season, Rodrygo eventually lost his place and frequently suffered from fitness problems. He has since only played a bit-part role for Real Madrid.

Summer transfer unlikely for Rodrygo

Because of his lack of regular minutes, speculation over his future has been rampant since last summer. Arsenal, Liverpool and Man City were all reportedly interested in signing the Brazilian last year.

No move materialised as Rodrygo wanted to fight for his place at Real Madrid, but in hindsight, staying was clearly the wrong decision. He has started just six LaLiga games this term and missed numerous fixtures in recent weeks because of tendonitis.

His long-term injury comes just a day after sensational reports in Spain claimed that Chelsea had presented a €70 million offer to sign the Real Madrid star in the summer transfer window amid concerns over their current winger options.

It was claimed that Chelsea had promised Rodrygo a regular starting spot at Stamford Bridge. The aforementioned Romano had previously predicted that the attacker would be one to watch this summer.

However, with Rodrygo now unlikely to return to the pitch before the end of the summer window, it is highly unlikely that he will be on the move after this season.

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