Sevilla have completed their first major piece of business this summer by signing Oscar Rodríguez from Real Madrid. Some had been expecting to see the 22 year old leave on loan again having excelled at Leganes last season but having been on the books of Los Blancos for half his life, Oscar moves to Seville on a permanent deal for an exciting new chapter his career.
? NEW SIGNING ALERT! ?
? @oscararnaiz10 is our first signing of the 20/21 season! ?
Welcome, Óscar! ?#WeareSevilla #VamosmiSevilla
— Sevilla FC (Europa League Champions ?) (@SevillaFC_ENG) August 29, 2020
DONE DEAL – Sevilla sign Óscar Rodríguez
- Previous Club: Real Madrid
- Fee: €13.5 million
- Contract Expiry: 30th June 2025
- Position: Attacking Midfielder
- Age: 22
- 2019/20 LaLiga Stats*: 30 Appearances | 9 Goals | 2 Assists
*On loan at Leganes
Oscar Rodríguez has been on loan at Leganes for the past two seasons and while the South Madrid side did ultimately get relegated last term, he was their undisputed bright spark. Were it not for Oscar’s goals, many of which came from dead ball situations, Leganes would have had their relegation confirmed long before the final weekend of the season.
Faced with challenging circumstances after the departures of a couple of key forwards, Oscar was frequently asked to play in unfamiliar roles during the back-end of the campaign and he invariably stepped up. Indeed the two games where he was asked to start as a striker, he chipped in with 3 goals and it’s no surprise that a club of Sevilla’s calibre has decided to take a punt on a player who will surely only get better over the next few years.
Dead-Ball Deadeyes ???
Oscar Rodriguez and Messi are #LaLigaSantander's TOP Scorers from free-kicks! ?⚽ pic.twitter.com/5EnGJXzBDB
— LaLiga English (@LaLigaEN) June 20, 2020
How will Óscar fit in at Sevilla?
Óscar Rodríguez has shown just how versatile he is and while there isn’t an obvious role for him in Sevilla’s first-choice starting XI at the moment, that ability to play in a number of positions should stand him in good stead.
Julen Loptegui’s 4-3-3 formation, that helped Sevilla clinch a 6th Europa League win earlier this month, features three relatively deep-lying central midfielders. Óscar is somebody who clearly enjoys a greater license to get forward so it’ll be interesting to see if there’s a slight shift in the balance of the Andalusian side’s midfield next term with key man Ever Banega leaving.
Alternatively Óscar could be used higher up the pitch, either as back-up to Lucas Ocampos, or as a replacement for him should the right-sided forward move on to pastures new this summer with interest in the Argentine likely after an outstanding season.
