Almost thirty caps for his country, three titles in one of
Europe’s top leagues, a Europa League winner’s medal and topped with a £40m
move to one of the world’s most glamorous football clubs. Not a description of
a player you’d consider unknown, but James Rodriguez has been treated as such
during these World Cup finals.
It appears as though only players of video-game series
Football Manager were aware of his talents before this summer, and even those
of us that were didn’t realise we were pronouncing his name wrong the whole
time. So how is it that Rodriguez’s brilliance at this tournament is shaping his
reputation, rather than merely confirming it?
A large part of the reason is where, rather than how, the
attacking midfielder plied his trade until now. Although he’d made nearly one hundred
league appearances and earned ten caps for Colombia before he was twenty, these
years were spent in the relative wilderness of South American football.
Even this early success was down to the influence of a
supposed ally of Pablo Escobar. The president of Envigado, the club that gave
Rodriguez his first shot at senior football, was apparently a friend of the
infamous drug lord. Before long, he found himself at Banfield in Argentina: a
step up, but still a long way from the television deals and worldwide exposure
of European football.
However, his form on the international stage was catching
the eye of Europe’s more astute scouts and it was Porto that came calling after
Rodriguez had led Colombia’s U-20 side to victory in the 2011 Toulon Tournament.
Finally Europe was taking notice, but the British remained oblivious as the
playmaker led Porto to three titles in three years.
Indeed, ask your average Briton to name a Colombian
footballer before this summer and Falcao would have been the most common response,
probably followed by Inter’s Fredy Guarin. Having had a career closely linked
to that of Falcao, Rodriguez has lived largely in the striker’s shadow,
following him to Porto and then onto AS Monaco.
It was this shadow that caused many to write off Colombia’s
chances when Falcao failed to recover from the knee injury sustained six months
ago – even the £40m Monaco spent on Rodriguez last summer couldn’t convince the
masses of his star qualities.
But his team-mate's injury has given Rodriguez the platform
to excel at these World Cup finals. Throughout qualifying, James found himself
out on the left, isolated from the areas in which he has been such an influence
at this tournament. When Falcao had to drop out of the squad, Jose Pekerman
moved Rodriguez inside, handed him the number 10 shirt and in doing so gave him
the tools to become one of the stars of the competition.
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| James Rodriguez hits the volley that finally woke the world up to his special talents (ballball.com) |
Granted, Portugal and France do not boast domestic leagues
to rival La Liga, the Premier League or even the Bundesliga, but Rodriguez
has stood out to such an extent that it is almost criminal that he is only
getting recognition now. Thirty-four goals and twenty-three assists in his four
seasons in Europe are testament to the significance of the 22-year-old’s contribution.
As the Colombian announces himself alongside Neymar
and Mario Goetze as young challengers to Messi and Ronaldo’s throne, it is only
a matter of time before the likes of Real Madrid come calling. Although Monaco
have the financial clout to resist the temptation to sell, their absence among
the game’s elite leaves them exposed to losing their star asset.
In England, our Premier League tunnel vision is finally being
widened in a way only the World Cup can. For too long, the extent of Rodriguez’s
quality has been hidden by our own ignorance and the shadow of those around
him, but at long last a deserved spotlight is being shone upon one of the game’s
most exciting young players.
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