Everton have been linked with a move for James Rodriguez and may have to battle Wolverhampton Wanderers for his signature, but whether the Toffees can genuinely afford to bring him to Goodison Park remains to be seen.
Gylfi Sigurdsson could be on his way out of Everton this summer as he’s surplus to requirements and was nearly sold in January, but James would be an ambitious replacement.
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The 28-year-old may be available this summer after falling down the pecking order at Real Madrid. As per Transfermarkt, James has made only seven Liga appearances this season, scoring and creating two goals, but hasn’t featured in the top-flight since October 2019. Injuries have played their part, but he’s also out of favour under Zinedine Zidane.
He featured more frequently in the Copa Del Rey, playing in every stage of the competition until their exit at the Quarter-Final stage. James also came off the bench in Real’s Supercopa Semi-Final win over Valencia in January. He was an unused substitute as Los Blancos won in the final a month later, however.
The Colombian international may be open to a move away from Real due to a lack of playing time, but he won’t come cheap. James has a €50m (£45m) asking price and earns €6.5m-a-year/€125k-per-week (£5.85m/£112.5k-per-week) in Spain – he’d be Everton’s highest earner and second-most expensive signing.
While not setting the place alight this season, the 28-year-old would improve the Everton squad. As per Transfermarkt, he scored and created 18 goals in 50 games for Club Atletico Banfield, 73 goals in 108 games at FC Porto, 24 goals in 38 games at AS Monaco, 79 goals in 124 games at Real and 35 goals in 67 games at Bayern Munich (loan).
Sigurdsson may be offloaded if Marcel Brands can find a suitor, but fans should temper their expectations on James being his replacement. The Colombian international won’t be an easy signing to get over the line – he’ll turn 29 and could break Everton’s transfer and wage structure if terms were agreed.