Real Madrid have had a historic summer transfer window, already bringing in six new signings including Yan Diomandé, now the most expensive player in the club’s history. But the deal that would have solved their biggest structural problem — a genuine defensive midfielder — fell through this week, after Rodri Hernández personally told the club he was prioritizing a move to fierce rivals Barcelona instead.

Reverting to the original plan

According to AS’s José Félix Díaz, that setback has pushed Real Madrid back toward a plan that was actually already under discussion before pre-season even began: using Bernardo Silva, signed as a free agent after his Manchester City contract expired, in a deeper midfield role. Mourinho reportedly believes Silva — naturally an attacking midfielder or right-sided playmaker — has the vision, composure, and defensive work rate to help shape Real Madrid’s build-up play from a deeper position, likely as part of a double pivot alongside Aurélien Tchouaméni, with the Frenchman providing the defensive cover Silva’s game doesn’t naturally offer.

Multiple outlets describe Rodri’s rejection as landing less disruptively than it might have because of that groundwork already being in place — Silva was reportedly at the top of Mourinho’s list even before the Rodri opportunity emerged.

Is the market really closed?

Reports diverge slightly on what happens next. Some, including Fichajes and Goal, describe Real Madrid as having effectively ruled out signing another midfielder this summer, trusting the current group — Tchouaméni, Fede Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga, Silva, and Arda Güler — to cover the position collectively, with any further market movement now contingent on Tchouaméni or Camavinga being sold first (something Camavinga has already said he won’t accept). Other reports suggest Real Madrid are still monitoring a handful of alternative names, including Adam Wharton, Kees Smit, and Ayoub Bouaddi, in case an opportunity arises before the window shuts in three weeks. Either way, the club’s public messaging has been consistent: they won’t force through a signing with a player who doesn’t genuinely want to join, a pointed reference to how the Rodri situation ended.

A crowded double pivot

The knock-on effect is a genuinely packed midfield picture. With Tchouaméni, Camavinga, Valverde, Silva, and Güler all realistically competing for what amounts to two starting double-pivot spots, some will inevitably be left out each week — a reminder that the club’s stated confidence in solving this “from within” comes with its own set of hard decisions still to make.

RMxtra Verdict

Missing out on a player of Rodri’s caliber is a real blow, but Real Madrid clearly aren’t panicking into a replacement signing just to fill the gap. Whether Silva, a player with no real specialist history at the base of midfield, can do the job across a full season remains the open question — this is being framed as a considered pivot, not a plan B scrambled together overnight