It was with great pleasure that those who had not been familiar with the vast talents of James Rodriguez watched and partook of his exploits in Brazil this summer. It soon became clear to the previously uninitiated that his talent is indeed one that is on the very verge of greatness and could be the cornerstone of many of the biggest clubs in Europe.
With that glowing assessment of his talent in mind, it would, to the layman at least, seem that his move to Real Madrid from Monaco makes perfect sense, both to the team and the player. In stark contrast, I have to express a bit more reservation about this transfer than others might.
It stands to reason that any player who even begins to approach superstar status would ultimately yearn to reach the stages offered by the world's biggest clubs--that much is given and understood. However, with that in mind, one would hope that a player, and perhaps equally so his agent, would likewise look to secure a move to a big club that would also offer the player a fantastic chance to feature and play a very vital and central role. This is where my concern about Real Madrid rises.
As history would show, there is certainly no reason for us to expect Real Madrid to show anything resembling restraint in the transfer market. After all, the club prides itself on its Galactico ethos, has the resources to sign anybody under the sun, and will stop at nothing to stockpile the roster with world-class talent. We can't begrudge them for that.
For Rodriguez, however, we are justified to wonder just where he will fit into the plans and how much he will play throughout Real Madrid's domestic and European campaigns. The competition for a spot in Real Madrid's starting eleven is stout, both by way of talent and reputation, regardless of the capacity Rodriguez could be utilized. Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale are obviously entrenched in the lineup in positions that Rodriguez would normally fancy, and should Rodriguez have eyes on working as a more centrally-oriented playmaker, the newly-added Toni Kroos will have ambitions of operating there as well.
Would another season at Monaco have served James Rodriguez poorly? Hardly. He would have been the central figure of the team, would have had a Champions League foray to embark upon, and would have likely had the rigors of a title race with Paris St. Germain to contend with. For a player who, for all of his talent, is still developing, such a scenario would do him no harm. Moving to a new club, even that of Real Madrid, and not playing for large stretches of the season certainly could.
The soccer landscape over the years has been littered with players who have engineered big-money moves, only to see their careers stagnate. If James Rodriguez gets his fair share of time this coming season, we can all breathe a sigh of relief in knowing that this won't be the case. If the opposite happens, then the aforementioned concerns may come far too close to being validated.
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