Abdoulaye Doucoure has said that Real Madrid committed a blunder by agreeing to sell midfielder James Rodriguez to the Premier League team.
The 2014 World Cup Golden Ball winner surprisingly moved to the Toffees ahead of this season. After moving from Monaco to Madrid following his heroics in the 2014 World Cup, his career failed to live up to expectations. He had spells with Madrid and Bayern Munich.
Whilst he showed glimpses of promise at the two clubs, he failed to achieve a level of consistency which could see him earning favourable comparisons to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Rodriguez’s transfer to Goodison Park saw him reuniting with Carlo Ancelotti, who took him to Madrid in the summer of 2014.
He has so far been good in England as he has scored three goals and recorded three assists.
“I think Real Madrid made a mistake by letting him go,” Doucoure told Onze Mondial (via Sport Witness).
“I was able to talk to him. He told me Zidane had his starting XI, and it was hard to break in.
“Real Madrid have a lot of great players, but James is a magnificent footballer. He has everything. I understand why they paid €80m for him.
“He had a good spell at Bayern Munich even if he wasn’t kept. Sooner or later, he’ll return to a very big club, because he’s got great qualities. He was just lacking minutes and confidence.”
The move to Everton may just have been what Rodriguez needs to reignite his career. At 29, he is just past his prime but can still play at the highest level for a few more years.
