Official: Barcelona extend their player's contract until 2029
with the possibility of a two-year extension
Barcelona have handed young goalkeeper Iker Rodriguez, 18, a new three-year contract until the summer of 2029, with an option to extend for two further seasons until 2031. The deal secures the future of one of the brightest rising talents between the posts.
According to Spanish newspaper "Mundo Deportivo", Rodriguez put pen to paper on Friday afternoon. Jaume Santiveri and Jose Ramon Alexanko, Barcelona's director of youth football, attended the signing alongside members of his family and his agents.
First-choice keeper for Barcelona Atletic in group two of the Spanish second division, Rodriguez has already featured for the first team this season. Hansi Flick called him up for the clash with Sevilla to cover for the injured Joan Garcia, who was sidelined with a knee problem.
His previous contract was due to expire in 2027. Barcelona moved to renew it at the start of last July after several European clubs circled, and the club believed at the time that his continuation was settled. The signing then stalled over scheduling, administrative procedures and some amendments to the contract's clauses.
This renewal ties down one of the most promising goalkeepers in Spanish football. Rodriguez joined the club at an early age after starting out with Can Rull in the city of Sabadell, and he has represented Spain at under-15, under-16, under-17, under-18 and under-19 levels.
Having trained through part of the pre-season under Flick, the young goalkeeper has become a key man for Barcelona Atletic under Juliano Belletti. They currently top group two of the Spanish second division "Segunda RFEF", having conceded only four goals in their first eight matches.
At the start of July, Barcelona planned to use Rodriguez and the currently injured Eder Aller as cover behind first-team keepers Joan Garcia and Wojciech Szczesny. The signing of Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic during the transfer window reshuffled that pecking order.
