James Rodriguez’s Everton Future Set to Be Transfer Talking Point

In the opening weeks of what felt like a never-ending 2020-21 Premier League season, James Rodriguez and Everton appeared to be a match made in heaven.

The Colombian’s brilliant performances were a catalyst for the Toffees surging to the summit of the table and playing some thrilling attacking football.

But come the end of the campaign, after a succession of injury issues for Rodriguez and with Everton finishing in 10th after a few months of turgid football, the club and the player don’t seem quite so well aligned.

That came to a head this week. Rodriguez was absent for Wednesday’s game with Wolverhampton Wanderers due to fatigue and then after it was confirmed he wouldn’t be available for the season finale against Manchester City, the 29-year-old posted a picture of himself on a jet heading back to Colombia.

With the Everton team still technically in the fight for European football going into the final day, the social media post didn’t go down well with a lot of supporters, who have been increasingly frustrated by Rodriguez’s absences in the second half of the campaign.

In Colombia, he’s received criticism too. Carlos Gonzalez of Marca Claro (h/t Sport Witness) said the playmaker “seems to be alright to rush back to Colombia to join up with the national team” and accused him of “living in his own world, far from reality.”

With the Copa America to come this summer, Rodriguez is unlikely to be far away from the public eye at any point in the coming weeks and Evertonians will monitor his performance and fitness levels closely. For many, the player has chosen to prioritise his country over his club.

Now, plenty are asking what happens next with Rodriguez, who is likely to be as fragile as he is fantastic, making him difficult to build a settled team around.

While there’s yet to be any significant speculation linking the former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich man with a move away from the club, it feels like what happens with Rodriguez, who has a year left on his deal at Goodison Park, will be one of the main talking points of a vital window for the Toffees.