Everton and Arsenal target James Rodriguez has been left out of Real Madrid’s squad for the second game in a row ahead of Friday night’s clash with Alaves, according to Marca.
If the fallen £63 million superstar was hoping to save his Los Blancos career after two years on loan at Bayern Munich, he has been sorely disappointed.
Then again, the writing was always on the wall for James as soon as Zinedine Zidane made a triumphant return to the Bernabeu bench in March 2019.
It was the legendary Frenchman who left James out of the 4-1 Champions League final triumph over Juventus three years ago.
And, as long as Zidane sticks around, James will have to get used to life on the bench – or worse.
For the second game in a row, the Colombian play-maker has been left at home as his side close in on the title.
Just to rub salt into the wounds, Real have only named a squad of 22 players ahead of tonight’s home game with Alaves, leaving a space empty rather than including this Galactico-turned-pariah.
With just five La Liga starts to his name across 2019/20, you don’t need to be a footballing expert to understand that James is crying out for a fresh start after six years at Real Madrid.
A Newcastle side on the lookout for marquee summer signings have been linked, via Mundo Deportivo in May, while Sport suggested in April that Carlo Ancelotti could come to the rescue of one of his favourite former players.
James produced arguably the best performances of his career under the Everton boss during his first season in Spain.
“James Rodríguez? I like him a lot as a player,” Ancelotti told the Guardian this week, pouring gallons of fuel on a growing fire “I have to be honest – I like him a lot.”
Defensa Central reported this week that James’ apparent fitness problems are a major reason in why he has lost Zidane’s trust.
And, according to Marca, James’s price-tag has dropped to just £18 million with Wolves and Arsenal also in the race.
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