Real Madrid, Manchester United to negotiate over James Rodriguez soon
Real Madrid want to sell James Rodriguez this summer, and Manchester United might make a bid.
James Rodriguez and Gareth Bale are the two veteran players Real Madrid would most like to offload this summer, and, between the two of them, James is the more likely player to be sold.
Although Premier League clubs like Newcastle United, Manchester United, Everton, and Tottenham have been linked to Bale, his salary and poor play in 2019-2020 will likely preclude him from being swapped.
Meanwhile, James is a strong attacking midfield option. When healthy, he showed his world-class chance creation ability from open play and set pieces for Real Madrid this season, and he showed a ton of effort defensively, finishing second on the team in tackles per game, according to WhoScored.com.
There should be a number of teams interested in James, but the most intriguing team would be Manchester United due to their finances. James could blossom at United with their young attackers, but the Red Devils did recently sign a superstar playmaker in one-time Real Madrid transfer target Bruno Fernandes.
According to a report from Luke Gardener of The Express, Manchester United and Real Madrid are set to open transfer negotiations next week. Gardener addresses the issue of Fernandes, stating that United wants this deal in order to obtain more quality depth. And an experienced player like James can certainly do that. The Premier League season, after all, is grueling, and United want to challenge rivals Liverpool and Manchester City for the title again.
Per The Express, Real is asking for 25 million euros for James, which sounds like a sum of money they could realistically get.
Napoli, Milan, Benfica, Everton, Atletico Madrid, and others have been linked to James going into the 2020 summer transfer market, but if the Red Devils want a little more attacking firepower in the squad, then this could be the James deal that gets done.
Three long-term transfer targets for Real Madrid. dark. Next
Madridistas should hope for successful negotiations between both clubs, and the fans will also wish James the best of success. He still has a special place in their hearts.