Early career Born in
Rio de Janeiro, Rodrigo moved to Spain in his early teens, settling in
Galicia and started playing organised football with
RC Celta de Vigo. Only a few weeks after arriving, Rodrigo started playing as a senior with the
C team. Shortly after, he was promoted to
Real Madrid Castilla in
Segunda División B, making his debut with the latter on 29 November 2009 in a 4–3 away win against
UD Lanzarote.
Benfica On 31 July 2010, Rodrigo signed a five-year contract with
S.L. Benfica for a reported fee of €6 million. Real Madrid had an option to re-buy the player for €12 million during the next two seasons; however, after
Fábio Coentrão's transfer to the Spanish club, both parties agreed to cancel the buyback clause. The following month, Rodrigo joined
Premier League side
Bolton Wanderers on a
season-long loan. He made his official debut in a
League Cup fixture at
Burnley on 21 September, starting in a
1–0 away loss. Rodrigo first appeared in the league for Bolton on 23 October 2010, coming on as a
substitute for
Lee Chung-yong midway through the second half of a 1–1 away draw with
Wigan Athletic. On 5 January 2011, against the same opponent, he scored his only goal of the campaign, with the game ending with the same result. in 2012 Returning to Benfica for
2011–12, Rodrigo played 38 competitive matches in his first year and scored 16 goals, including the opener in
the season's
Taça da Liga final against
Gil Vicente FC, which his team won for the fourth year in a row (2–1). On 2 January 2013, he combined with
Óscar Cardozo for five goals in a 6–0 home defeat of
C.D. Aves in the
fifth round of the
Taça de Portugal. On 31 January 2014, Benfica (and
Benfica Stars Fund) sold 100% of Rodrigo's economic rights to a private company, Meriton Capital Limited, owned by
Peter Lim, for €30 million, plus another potential €10 million on performance-related bonuses– he remained with them until the end of
the campaign. On 10 April, he scored a brace in a 2–0 home win against
AZ Alkmaar in the
quarter-finals of the
UEFA Europa League, which took the hosts through to the last-four stage 3–0 on aggregate. Rodrigo scored Benfica's first goal in a
2–0 final victory over
Rio Ave F.C. in the
League Cup, and was subsequently voted
player of the match as the
Lisbon side won the competition for the fifth time in seven years. On 14 May he had his
penalty shootout attempt saved by
Sevilla FC's
Beto, in an eventual
Europa League final loss; in total, he contributed 18 goals in 43 appearances across all competitions to win an unprecedented
treble of
Primeira Liga,
Taça de Portugal and League Cup.
Valencia On 23 July 2014, Rodrigo moved back to Spain, after agreeing to a one-season loan deal with
Valencia CF. Although his economic rights were owned by Lim, a loan was arranged to take him and
André Gomes to Valencia due to Lim's purchase of the latter club. Rodrigo made his debut for the
Che on 23 August 2014, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 away draw against Sevilla. He scored his first
La Liga goal on 22 September, netting the last of a 3–0 away win over
Getafe CF through a
penalty, but was later
sent off; he was dismissed the following 30 May for striking
Rayo Vallecano's
Toño, and banned for three games by the
Royal Spanish Football Federation. On 15 June 2015, Benfica and Valencia announced they had reached an agreement on Rodrigo's federative rights, and he signed a four-year contract with the latter until 30 June 2019, for a reported fee of €30 million, which made him their
most expensive transfer at the time. After moderate returns in his first three seasons at the
Mestalla Stadium, he scored a career-best 16 goals (19 in all competitions) in
2017–18 as the
Marcelino García Toral-led team
qualified for the group stage of the
UEFA Champions League; in late November 2017, he was rewarded with a new deal through 2022 with a reported release clause of €120 million. On 29 January 2019, Rodrigo scored a second-half
hat-trick – including two goals in injury time – as the hosts defeated Getafe 3–1 in the
quarter-finals of the
Copa del Rey, winning the tie 3–2 on aggregate. He also scored in the
decisive match, a 2–1 defeat of
FC Barcelona at the
Estadio Benito Villamarín. On 17 September 2019, Rodrigo scored the only goal of the match in the first
Champions League group stage fixture, providing Valencia's first ever win against
Chelsea in the club's history. On 10 December, he repeated the feat in a 1–0 away win over
AFC Ajax to reach the knockout phase.
Leeds United On 29 August 2020,
Leeds United announced the signing of Rodrigo on a four-year deal for a club-record fee of £27 million (€30 million). He made his Premier League debut for them in the first match of
the season against reigning champions
Liverpool on 12 September, coming on as a substitute in the 4–3 defeat at
Anfield. Four days later, he made his first start in a 1–1 draw with
League One side
Hull City in the
EFL Cup (penalty shootout loss). Rodrigo scored his first goal on 3 October 2020, in a 1–1 home league draw against
Manchester City. Having missed several games through a groin injury at the beginning of 2021, he was used sparingly by
Marcelo Bielsa upon his return before hitting strong form at the end of the campaign, scoring his first brace for the club on 15 May in a 4–0 away victory over
Burnley. He finished his first year with seven goals, four of them coming in the final four fixtures. Rodrigo scored six times in the league in the
2021–22 campaign. His team managed to stay up on the last matchday. On 28 January 2023, Rodrigo sustained a bone and ligament injury during a 3–1 win at
Accrington Stanley in the
fourth round of the
FA Cup, and was sidelined until his return as a 66th-minute replacement for
Patrick Bamford in the 2–2 home draw with
Brighton on 11 March. He went on to manage three more league goals for the remainder of
the season, being Leeds' top scorer, but was stricken with injury again –
plantar fasciitis – against
West Ham, scoring in the 3–1 loss at
London Stadium.
Al-Rayyan On 13 July 2023,
Al-Rayyan SC triggered a relegation release clause inserted into Rodrigo's Leeds contract, signing the player. One year later, he was loaned to fellow
Qatar Stars League club
Al-Gharafa SC. ==International career==