Rodriguez James is a young but well-known Colombian footballer who currently plays as a midfielder for Real Madrid and his national team.
Biography and career start
First, I would like to tell a couple of interesting biographical facts about this player. He was born in 1991, on July 12, in a place called Cucuta. Generally, Rodriguez James is better known as James. He does not love his name and prefers a nickname. Just the name was given to him by his father (who left his family very early) - a former Colombian footballer. And he wanted to connect his life with this sport thanks to the cartoon "Captain Tsubasa".
It is interesting that the young footballer is married to a girl who is the sister of David Ospine, the goalkeeper of the Colombian national team. True, the goalkeeper has nothing to do with their acquaintance. With a goalkeeper, James met as the brother of his chosen one, and only after a couple of years they became partners in the national team.
And the football activity of the Colombian originates in 1995. It is worth recalling that he was only 4 years old then. From early childhood, James was involved in this sport, and from 1995 to 2005 he played and studied at the youth “Envigado”. Together with this club in 2004 he won the Pony Cup.
The player had successes, and therefore already at the age of 15 he played for the main team of “Envigado”. His debut there took place in the second half of 2006. In the next, 2007, James has already scored his first goal. And largely thanks to him, the team won in the second division of the Colombian championship. Representatives of the national team and other clubs watched these successes, therefore, he was soon invited to join the youth national team of Colombia.
In 2008, in January, Rodriguez James moved to FC Banfield (Argentina). But the debut at a professional level took place only in 2009, in February. And in his second match, he already scored the first goal for the new team. So James broke two records. Firstly, he became the youngest foreign footballer in the history of the Argentinean championship. The second record turned out to be similar. He became the youngest foreign footballer to score in the Argentinean championship.
Transition to the “Port”
In 2009, James Rodriguez came to the attention of the Italian club “Udinese”. Representatives of this team offered three million dollars for half the player’s contract. But the deal was not destined to take place. She broke loose. Because James stayed with the former club until then, “Porto” did not make him an advantageous offer. Then James Rodriguez agreed and moved to the Portuguese club for the amount of 5.1 million euros. At the same time, “Banfield” retained 30 percent of the rights to a football player.
In the first match (he was against Ajax), he scored a goal, which ensured victory for his new team. In the next game, which was already against FC Maritimo, he also sent the ball into the opponents' goal. But, in addition to this, he also completed two assists. Soon, the Colombian showed himself in the European arena, in the match against CSKA (from Sofia). James renewed the contract in 2011. And the contract indicated that a potential club-buyer, in case of a desire to acquire Rodriguez, would have to pay 45 million euros.
Latest clubs
James Rodriguez is a sought-after footballer, so it is not surprising that he was bought for the notorious 45 million euros by representatives of “Monaco”. Moreover, they still acquired João Moutinho, James's teammate. Only for him paid 25 million. Each of the players signed a contract for 5 years. And on August 10, James made his debut. True, he scored the first goal only at the end of November - it was a game against FC Rennes. And although James Rodriguez did not win a single trophy this season, he helped the club to take second place in the championship.
In 2014, in the summer, just after the World Cup, at which James showed himself very worthy, he was bought by Real Madrid. The Spanish club did not report any details regarding the transaction and payment. Unofficial information says that a Colombian has entered into an agreement with the club for six years. And, they say, his annual salary is 7 million euros.
Team and Achievements
Rodriguez James, whose biography is quite rich, is not only a good club footballer, but also a worthy representative of his national team. At the World Championships in 2014, he scored in every match. Thanks to such successes, he was recognized as the top scorer of the championship. And included in the symbolic team of the 2014 World Cup.
Anyway, the Colombian has a lot of achievements and trophies. Together with “Banfield”, James became the champion of Argentina, with “Porto” - three times won the championship of Portugal. He also became the owner of the Cup and Super Bowl of the country. The last trophy in the “Porto”, he won four times. And another important trophy is a victory in the Europa League in the 2010/11 season.
With Real Madrid, James won the Champions League, Super Bowl and Club World Cup. And it is safe to say that in the near future he will win many more trophies.