This past week there was another rumor in the Inter Miami world, one of the many rumors that we will be hearing for the next couple of months until the club finally signs their top world football star they’ve been searching for. But this rumor is more significant than the other ones for one main reason: this player is only 28 years old and is still in his prime.
If you guessed James Rodríguez then you guessed correctly, the Colombian, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich number 10 is rumored to be the one player that David Beckham is trying to lure to the beaches and warm weather of South Florida. As an Inter Miami fan it would be a dream come true if a player like James Rodríguez came to play for us.
Real Madrid’s James Rodríguez during a game.
Yes, we’re all very aware that he will be by far the hardest player to sign from amongst the other players that have been linked to be coming to Miami (Edinson Cavani, Cesc Fàbregas, David Silva, Luis Suárez and Luka Modric) mainly because he’s only 28 years old and the other players mentioned are passed 32 years of age, but he would be the best option for the team, he would give the team a whole lot more years than the other rumored players.
There are some Inter Miami fans that don’t like the idea of James Rodríguez joining our squad, many say that he’s not a caliber player, some say that he’s constantly injured, or that he’s too lazy of a player. Some say that it will be impossible for him to sign for Miami when top clubs such as Arsenal and Manchester United are also going after him.
James poses with Bayern’s jersey after joining the team in 2017.
Personally, I feel that James best option is Miami, as crazy as it sounds. But if I were to put myself in his shoes, considering the fact that he is constantly moving with his family every two years and hehasn’t had much playing time in the teams that he has played for in the past six years, why would I want to move to the English Premier League to either Arsenal or Manchester United, two struggling teams that have been trying to rebuild their squads for the past few seasons?
If he chooses Miami, he will be playing every week and his family will be in a city that I’m sure they would love, considering the fact that South Florida has a large Colombian community. It would be like home away from home for the Rodríguez family. Although he can still choose to play at the highest level in Europe, no team will assure him of secured playing time which is something that he really needs since the 2022 World Cup is just around the corner.
Colombia’s James celebrates after scoring against Uruguay in the 2014 World Cup.
I’ve followed James since the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. I remember watching the Colombia vs Uruguay game in which James chested down a passed and turned and volleyed the ball into the back of the net. If I recall correctly, that was the goal of the tournament, at the point I knew that top teams would come knocking on his door the second the cup ended.
Unfortunately for James, the wrong team came knocking: Real Madrid, a team whose playing style doesn’t benefits him. The fast playing style of Real Madrid is the opposite of the “tiki taka” style of football that James plays with the Colombian national team. I always thought that he would have been more successful playing for Barcelona than Madrid. I can’t say that I was fully right because he never played for Barcelona, but I was right that he wasn’t successful at Madrid because of his lack playing time.
Zinedine Zidane and James Rodríguez during a training session.
Zinedine Zidane didn’t like his playing style, and Madrid loaned him to Munich, another team that plays extremely vertical, fast pace football, something that James finds a hard time getting used to. That’s why I don’t think that it would be a very good idea if James chose to play in the Premier League. If he found it difficult to get used to the pace of the Bundesliga, then he will find it even harder to get used to the fast, physical pace of the Premier League.
If Miami were to sign James Rodríguez, he would be by far, the biggest signing in MLS history. He might not be the best signing ever when it comes to “football quality”, because players like Thierry Henry, David Beckham, David Villa, Frank Lampard and others are far better players and accomplished more than James has in his career. But the fact remains and James is still a world football star, only 28 years old, still at the peak of his career.
David Beckham and Thierry Henry face each other in an MLS game.
He would be considered the biggest signing in history, it would change MLS fame as a “retirement” league, which is something that MLS has been trying to change little by little in the past years especially when they brought Sebastian Giovinco to Toronto. The Italian Ace was also in his late 20’s when he moved to MLS from world class team Juventus, but he isn’t at the level of James Rodriguez when it comes to the level of football.
Imagine if James came to Inter Miami, he would provide the team with at least 6 or 7 years of top football. He would accomplished what other world class players that have come to MLS didn’t accomplish, and that is, that he would help to build up the history of a team by playing more than five seasons in a top level and not retire after playing only two or three seasons in MLS.
James Rodriguez waves to Real Madrid fans.
From a marketing point of view, James would be an incredible signing for Miami. The large amount of Colombians living in Miami would be extremely happy to see their “number 10” playing in their backyard every weekend. Some might not be so happy because they would consider the level of MLS too low for James, but one thing is for sure, James will sell a whole lot of jerseys for the team, as well as tickets. Inter Miami has already sold their season tickets for their inaugural season, and it’s extremely difficult to find individual game tickets. The signing of James Rodríguez would make it even more difficult.
For a fan, such as myself, the one and only reason why his signing would matter to me is that I know that he would bring a lot to the team with his football. I don’t care about the marketing aspect, as I mentioned before in my previous column. What I want is a player that will provide the team with world class football for many seasons and not only two seasons.
A Bayern fan takes a picture with James.
If this signing were to come true, it would benefit the team, the league and James. He would have stability with his family, he would be in a team in which he would be respected by his teammates, coaches and owners, something that he hasn’t had since arriving in Madrid. It would also benefit the Colombian national team because James would be playing every week and not sitting on a bench, no footballer wants to be sitting down on bench for an entire season. That wouldn’t be a problem in Miami.
I read some comments from Inter Miami fans saying that we don’t need him in the team because we already have Rodolfo Pizarro as our number 10. My answer to that comment is that James or Pizarro are two world class players and can adapt to each other if they were to play together.
Inter Miami’s Rodolfo Pizarro tries to control the ball during an MLS game.
In Madrid, James played out on the right, Luka Modric is their number 10. I’m sure James would be delighted to play as a false 9, someone who roams around wherever they like, kinda like what Lionel Messi does in Barcelona. Pizarro can still be the number 10, providing the strikers with passes to score goals.
Only time will tell where James will end up playing, but if he were to choose Miami over any other teams in Europe, it will mean a whole lot for the league and for Inter Miami. We, the fans, would welcome him with open arms. We would say: “Bienvenido a Miami, James!
