Colombian midfielder James Rodriguez might still end up leaving Real Madrid even though the club has already rejected a loan offer from English Premier League club Chelsea. It is believed that Real Madrid President Florentino Perez is open to a deal only if it is permanent, and not a loan arrangement.
Just days before the summer transfer window closes on Aug. 31, The Mirror reports that Chelsea and Real Madrid failed to come to an agreement on James Rodriguez. Chelsea reportedly proposed to sign the midfielder on a loan deal, but the European Champions are only keen on a high-stakes deal. The club needs to recover the £65 million that they spent on James, following a stellar performance in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Speculations about a move to other clubs started to increase after James appeared to have fallen out of favor at the Santiago Bernabeu. He barely started in the 2015/16 La Liga season. Thanks to several injuries at the start of the new season, he managed to clock in some minutes in the past month. He played in the UEFA Super Cup victory against Sevilla and also managed to appear in the team’s first two La Liga matches. However, it is still way below the expectations brought about by the hype that came with his arrival two years ago.
Nevertheless, Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane assures fans that he is trying to treat James fairly, along with the other players. “He is a Real player and he is under contract. It’s true that he has played less minutes and that can be a problem. I always try to make every player feel important. James is the same as the others.”
With a team that has an abundant number of highly rated players, elbowing for position has been a constant struggle. James Rodriguez could potentially get more playing time in a different club, but it remains to be seen if any last-minute deal could be reached. Apart from Chelsea, Italian champions Juventus are reportedly interested.
