He caught the world's eye in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil with Colombia and made a fantastic move to Real Madrid. But James Rodriguez's career eventually went downhill and it seems like he's struggling to bounce back.
At 30 years of age, the former Porto, AS Monaco, and Bayern Munich star left Everton after just one season in the Premier League, which didn't end well as injuries caught up with him. With Carlo Ancelotti gone and Rafael Benitez at the helm of the Toffees, James decided to make a shocking switch to Qatari side Al-Rayyan.
But his spell in the Qatar Stars League hasn't begun as expected, as the playmaker struggled to be match fit. And, even when he returned to action, James suffered new problems. Now, he's facing a potentially lengthy suspension after a controversial episode on the weekend.
James Rodriguez faces potentially lengthy suspension in Qatar Stars League
In his third Qatar Stars League appearance on Saturday when Al-Rayyan lost 2-1 to Al Arabi, James Rodriguez was sent off shortly before the final whistle in what has been a bizarre episode that could prove costly for him.
Everything began when James received an ugly foul from Aaron-Salem Boupendza in the edge of the box. The Colombian player went mad against the referee for not showing the red card to the Al Arabi man but he picked up a yellow card for protesting.
That only made things worse, with James losing his head as his teammates tried to calm him down, but to no avail. In a shocking turn of events, James, who received the terrible foul, ended up seeing a second yellow card, being sent off and facing a possible ban of 4 to 24 games for aggresive behavior against the referee and unsportsmanlike conduct.
Sadly, James has also finished that game with a rib injury that will keep him on the sidelines for a few days, the club informed. James has played three league games (W1 L2) with Al-Rayyan, scoring a goal and producing an assist. And his slow start to life in the Qatar Stars League could suffer another setback depending on the sanction he receives.
