The former coach of the Colombian National Team, Francisco Maturana, He is one of the most authoritative voices to talk about football and players. This Thursday, February 15, he revealed a conversation he had with the steering wheel James Rodriguez, who once again generated controversy due to his current situation in his club: the São Paulo of Brazil.
(You can read: James' friend speaks directly about his case in Sao Paulo: 'It has to be realistic')
Maturana, who qualified the 'Tricolor' for the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, has his birthday this Thursday (75 years old) and was one of the guests on the program on VBAR Snail, in which he talked about James' current moment.
The strategist revealed a conversation he had with James a few years ago and the advice he gave him. “Two or three years ago, James was here in Medellín and I had the opportunity to talk with him because another of the people who sent me from Madrid to Real Valladolid was Rafa Benítez. He was James' coach, and I called to ask what was happening with James, because no one can deny his talent,” Maturana began to say.
The DT added: “The answer they gave me is that for one to be a Real Madrid player you have to be recognized on the day of the game, but you are also recognized on the street, for your walk, for your gait (…) because the player of a large institution is constantly under surveillance, because he is a leader and you have to live like that.”
What advice did you give James?
Due to what they told him about what was happening to James, Maturana revealed that he advised him to be more measured with respect to his public exposure.
(You may be interested in: Video: Zapata performs incredible scorpion in training and remembers Higuita's)
“I told James that he has not had a major injury, he has not had cruciate or collateral ligament surgery, I told him that there are times in life when one must disappear. 'You leave, you disappear, you prepare yourself physically, then you come back and break it', But if you are on (social) networks all day, you end up being very familiar and anyone has the license to say anything to you,” Maturana said.
This is how James's novel goes in Brazil
James Rodríguez continues training with São Paulo, but sees his future in another club, perhaps in another country. The 32-year-old from Cucuta arrived six months ago at the Brazilian team, where He only played 14 games and scored one goal. In addition, he finished 2023 and started 2024 with calf problems.
James' short history in Brazil has the same script as his last years in other clubs: he plays, he stops playing, sometimes he gets injured, then he gets uncomfortable and then he decides to leave.
However, the termination of the contract has not yet been confirmed and unofficial versions indicate that there are debts involved, money that hinders the player's departure. From Brazil it is said that James would be owed a sum of 2 million euros, for salaries and image rights, something that was denied by the club at the time, which would not have gone down well with the footballer's entourage.
(Also: Bombshell: Kylian Mbappé announced to Paris Saint-Germain that he is leaving the club)
While James' departure is being resolved, there is talk of options to play in the MLS, where Real Salt Lake and the Columbus Crew would be interested, but they are just rumors. In the last hours, Julio César Falcioni, coach of Banfied in Argentina, where James played in his early days, stated that they still have hope of being able to sign the talented midfielder.
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