James Rodríguez is once again taking center stage in international football due to the complicated situation he is going through. Colombia’s “10” in Spain. Many wonder why the best player of the last Copa América has only played six games since his arrival at Rayo Vallecano at the end of August, including five as a substitute.
In Rayo’s last match against Las Palmas before the national team’s break, the cameras filmed a James with a rather serious faceboth in the warm-up and throughout the fall, but above all for not having been taken into account again in the changes made by Íñigo Pérez.
The serious face of James Rodríguez on the Vallecas bench#LALIGAenDAZN ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/0jYIYCnnhY
– DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) November 8, 2024
Every time James went to the bench, The Colombian’s anger was more than evidentwhile Íñigo Pérez did not even look at him and even preferred to give priority to Óscar Trejo so that he could enter first. It was not until the 77th minute that the café player finally entered the field to replace Isi Palazón.
In the end, Rayo lost 0-1 against the Gran Canaria team and social networks were once again flooded with Colombian attacks on Vallecano coach given the few minutes that Iñigo Pérez almost always gives James on the pitch and with almost no possibility of standing out.
Almost everyone agrees on the same answer: the Colombian star does not fit in the playing system of coach franjirrojo Íñigo Pérez, nor physically because he does not give the pressure he should give and does not adapt to transitions.
The former Real Madrid player’s campaign at the Vallecano club is only 133 minutes in totalwithout a goal or assist, and very far from the level he displayed in the Copa América, leading his team to the final of the tournament, where they lost 1-0 in extra time against Leo Messi’s Argentina.
James’ two realities
Despite his lack of minutes at Rayo, James was called by Colombia for the FIFA double date to continue leading the team ahead of the 2026 World Cup qualifying rounds.
📽The 10th has arrived!🇨🇴🪄
𝓙𝓪𝓶𝓮𝓼 𝓡𝓸𝓭𝓻í𝓰𝓾𝓮𝔃 𝔂𝓪 𝓼𝓮 𝓮𝓷𝓬𝓾𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓻𝓪 𝓬𝓸𝓷 𝓷𝓾𝓮𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓪 𝓢𝓮𝓵𝓮𝓬𝓬𝓲ó𝓷 𝓒𝓸𝓵𝓸𝓶𝓫𝓲𝓪. #AllWeAreColombia🇨🇴#LaBuenaVibraConLaSele 🇨🇴 pic.twitter.com/jqD0VmDft8
– Colombia National Team (@FCFSeleccionCol) November 9, 2024
The “10”, which returned to find a smile again Once he arrived in Buenos Aires on Sunday, he posted a message online announcing his return to the national team. “with the same enthusiasm as always.” James was received with praise by many Colombian users on the networks.
Almost all Colombians agree that His real place is in the “Tricolore” and not in Vallecas. And it is inevitable not to compare the appreciation that the coffee captain receives in Colombia with the more than secondary role that he occupies under the orders of Íñigo Pérez in the Vallecano club.
With the same enthusiasm as always 🇨🇴 pic.twitter.com/tS2kXuKMXa
– James Rodríguez (@jamesdrodriguez) November 9, 2024
This is why James has been living two different realities for more than two years: on the one hand, the Colombian shines with his own light when he puts on the national team t-shirt. However, on the other hand, he did not find regularity in the clubs he played for after playing at Everton, Bayern Munich or Al-Rayyan.
This 2024 hasn’t been the luckiest either For the Colombian: in the first half of the year, he played a few minutes in the ranks of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and he didn’t really go out the door. However, James managed to shine in the Copa América with a masterful performance in all six championship games and won the MVP title which helped him return to the Spanish League.
