As James Rodriguez leaves his third club in as many years, where did it all go wrong for the former wonderkid?
The future star debuted for Envigado in the Colombian second division at just age 14, marking the beginning of a rollercoaster career. Rodriguez reached promotion in his first season, and a year later moved to Argentina to play for Banfield.
It was his time in Argentina that started to catch the eyes of European scouts, winning a league title in his second season, scoring a goal in the decisive match. In the summer of 2010, he would get his first big move, with Porto sending 5 million dollars to Banfield in exchange for his services.
He made just over 100 appearances in Portugal, starring alongside Hulk and fellow countryman Rademel Falcao. James picked up six trophies while at Porto, including three league titles and the Europa League crown in 2011.
The Colombian would follow Hulk and Falcao in leaving the club, joining his international teammate. He would link up once again with Falcao, this time in a switch to AS Monaco worth 45-million-dollars. During his single season in France he was regarded as one of the most talented players in the league. He earned a spot in the best XI and ended the season as Ligue 1’s top assister.
It was the summer following his season with Monaco when James would truly put his name on the world stage, at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. It was seemingly just enough to help his nation qualify for the first time in 20 years, but he had an unforgettable tournament as well. Eventually exiting in the Quarter-finals to Brazil, the Colombian was the tournament’s top goalscorer, above the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Miroslav Klose. He was the star man for Colombia, and even Diego Maradona stated that the golden ball should’ve gone to him rather than Messi.
Off the back of the tournament in Brazil, Real Madrid would go in for the player paying Monaco upwards of 60 million dollars. His arrival forced Angel Di Maria out the door, which helped see him play 46 times in his first season with ‘Los Blancos’. He would retain his spot in the team for much of the next year, but wouldn’t feature in the 2016 Champions League final, and started to lose playing time from there on out.
After a reported falling out with head coach Zinedine Zidane, the attacking midfielder started fewer and fewer games, and was becoming more disposable at Madrid every day. Real would make it to another Champions League final in 2017, and again the Colombian would not see the field.
In the following summer, his former Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti brought him to Bayern Munich on a two-year loan deal. Quickly into his stay in Germany James started to play a deeper role on the field, scoring less but creating much more. He had a successful two years at Bayern, winning two Bundesligas a German cup, and was named in the Bundesliga and Champions League team of the season in 2018. Ancelotti’s departure from Bayern meant that James would be returning to a Madrid side that had little use for him anymore. He barely made it to the 2018 World Cup, but was sparsely used due to injury as Colombia exited in the Round of 16
Upon his return to the Spanish capital, he only played 11 games and only started five of them. Without a spot in the squad anymore he finally left Real Madrid permanently, again rejoining Ancelotti, this time at Everton.
He impressed in his first season in the Premier League, playing 23 times scoring six goals, and assisting a further four, helping his side finish 10th. Despite decent performances, the media constantly criticized the Colombian, claiming he wasn’t fit or physical enough to play in the Premier League.
Again after just one year together, Ancelotti left Everton, and James would soon follow suit. He terminated his contract and got on a plane to Qatar, signing for Al Rayan. In just one year with Al Rayan James only managed to play 16 times before once again terminating his contract.
In September of 2022, he followed his former Madrid teammate Marcelo and joined Greek giants Olympiacos. He played 22 games in Greece, outlasting Marcelo, before terminating yet another contract on April 13th.
He is now 31 years old and without a club. James’ fall from grace has been slowly building for a long time now, and there seems to be little left to save his career. Rumors are linking him with a move to Turkey through either Galatasaray or Besiktas, but only time will tell where the failed superstar will end up.
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