---
title: "Man City news & talking points: Stones completes Inter move, Rodri & Real"
canonical: "https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/man-city-news-talking-points-31-july/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Gary Gowers"
section: "Man City News"
published: "2026-07-31T17:30:00Z"
modified: "2026-09-22T19:34:14Z"
---

# Man City news & talking points: Stones completes Inter move, Rodri & Real

**A day of transition in Man City news at the Etihad, with one era ending on the pitch and another beginning behind the scenes.**

[John Stones has completed his move to Inter Milan](https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/man-city-john-stones-inter-milan-completed/), bringing the curtain down on a decade at City that brought six Premier League titles and the club’s first Champions League.

The [32-year-old](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/john-stones/profil/spieler/186590) signed his contract in Milan on Thursday, though [a reunion with his old club looks unlikely to come this weekend](https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/man-city-john-stones-inter-hong-kong-reunion/) — City face Inter in Hong Kong on Saturday, but reports suggest Stones will take a short continuation of his summer break before properly joining up with Cristian Chivu’s squad.

Elsewhere, Real Madrid have made their first concrete move for Rodri. [City are stalling on a verbal offer of around €50m](https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/man-city-rodri-real-madrid-transfer-race/) in the hope that other suitors join the race and drive the price up, with both Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona credited with checking on his availability this week.

With Rodri entering the final year of his contract, City’s calculation is straightforward: sell now at a premium, or risk losing him for nothing next summer.

On the pitch — or at least on the way to it — [City’s pre-season tour of Asia is under way](https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/man-city-asia-tour-hong-kong-inter-milan/), with the squad touching down in Hong Kong ahead of Saturday’s Inter meeting at the Kai Tak Stadium.

Antoine Semenyo spoke of the scale of the welcome on arrival, a reminder of the size of the fanbase City are building on ahead of Enzo Maresca’s first full season in charge.

That changing of the guard is the subject of [a wider look at the history behind Maresca’s first season at City](https://readmancity.com/2026/07/31/the-history-lesson-behind-enzo-marescas-first-season-at-city/), worth a read for anyone wanting context on what comes next now the Guardiola era is officially over.

Between a departing legend, a current one attracting interest from Spain, and a new manager finding his feet on tour, it’s a summer of genuine transition at City — with plenty still to be resolved before a ball’s kicked in anger.