James Rodriguez is running out of time to find a club in Europe: this is the situation

The story of James Rodriguez It’s like a tale that is repeated over and over again, with its dramas, its tensions and its enigmas. Every transfer window James is in the shop windows, not as a bargain, but as an expensive footballer who feeds the press and the speculation market: he is rumored for this, he is rumored for that, he is said to be ready for that, and then he is ready for that. However, after having a majestic Copa América, James is without a team. Yes, without a team, and the story repeats itself.

James has just experienced a special tournament with the Colombian National Team. Dressed in yellow, as he looks best, he showed off all the football that we all know he has, but that is sometimes rejected by the clubs where he plays.

With the national team he made his name known again, and at the age of 33 he was once again the centre of attention of fans, the press, his rivals and various clubs who once again looked at him with the desire to have him.

Then he started to hear rumours from one side to the other, right in the middle of the tournament. But when the Copa America ended, with the runner-up medal and the trophies that accredited him as the best of the tournament, James only had one certainty: that he was not going to stay in São Paulo in Brazil, where he no longer played, where he was not taken into account, where he did not connect with the new coach (Luis Zubeldía), and where he had no success, he was not going to stay.

“When things don’t work out, you have to step aside,” he said in a recent Twitch stream. “Sometimes things go well and sometimes they go badly, and you always learn from everything. It’s a good experience, it taught me lessons, I learn a lot from bad things,” he added in what were his last statements.

Then the paperwork for his departure was accelerated and when he was already a free agent, that freedom now weighs on him, because he has nothing defined, at least not officially, although surely many talks are taking place these days in private.

James’ name has been mentioned in leagues in Spain, Portugal and Italy. His wish, as far as we know, is to return to Europe, where he played for Real Madrid and Bayern Munich in their golden era, but he is aware that, if he returns, it will not be to one of the top teams, because although James continues to shine, he is no longer the James of before.

Rayo Vallecano seems to be the most likely destination for James, but…

Spanish teams such as Real Betis, Rayo Vallecano, Villarreal, Valencia, Celta and even Atlético de Madrid have been in the mix as potential interested parties, but to date, with nothing concrete, the most recurrent information points to the fact that Rayo Vallecano is said to be really interested, and there is even talk in the press of the start of talks and a strategy by the team to sign a contract similar to the one it had until last semester with Falcao García, with business allies to pay his high salary. But these are still rumours, encouraged by James’ presence in Madrid, where this week he appeared in a photo with his teammate Juan Guillermo Cuadrado.

He had recently been ruled out in Italy by Lazio (at first it was speculated that he would arrive with a two-year contract with a salary of 4 million euros), from where they said that they did not have him in their plans, the same happened with Porto, which seemed a great possibility due to his past in that club, the first when he arrived in Europe.

Time is running out, the days are fleeting for a footballer who trains hard, but alone; who trains with everything, but not in a team; who keeps up physically, but has no competition. And that weighs on him. Especially when there is less than a month left before the national team plays again in the qualifying round, against Peru, on September 6, and against Argentina, on the 10th.

And that is why the great football debate today is whether James, the star of the Copa América, who arrived at the club without any rhythm, should be in the squad, even though his career is currently in a state of uncertainty.

Coach Néstor Lorenzo has already been asked about the issue and he dared to say that he hopes James is in a team where the coach puts him to play and where he has a leading role and where the coach wants him. Lorenzo has blind faith in his ’10’, but it will be much better for Colombia if that ’10’ is in competitive rhythm.

The European leagues are already getting underway and each day that passes is one less in James’ quest to find a good place. On August 30th the transfer market closes in the five main European leagues: Spain, Italy, England, France and Germany. That is, in 15 days.

Other markets will remain open for a few more days, such as the Portuguese (2nd September) or the Turkish (13th September), to see if that is the case. Meanwhile, James’ future is another great uncertainty, a story that repeats itself…

PAUL ROMERO

Editor of EL TIEMPO

@PabloRomeroET

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