James Rodríguez: Bayern Munich won't make loan deal permanent
The Colombia international has fallen out of favour at the Allianz Arena under Niko Kovac and the board have decided not to meet Real Madrid's fee.
Bayern Munich have decided not to make James Rodríguez’s loan move from Real Madrid permanent in the summer, according to reports in Germany.
After the Klassiker defeat against Borussia Dortmund last weekend, Bayern president Uli Hoeness stated that the Bundesliga giants would be seeking a generational change in the summer and with James’ stock at the club at its lowest ebb since his move from the Bernabéu in 2017 the Colombia international is expected to be one of the players moved on.
According to German daily Kicker, Bayern have set aside 200 million euros for a shake-up of the playing squad, making James’ purchase option of 42 million a stumbling block to a permanent deal. Neither the midfielder nor Real Madrid have any say in the matter: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge recently revealed that the decision is unilateral. The Bayern CEO said last summer that the club were keen on signing James on a permanent basis and the player also expressed his desire to remain at the Allianz Arena but since the arrival of Niko Kovac as manager the situation has changed dramatically.
James out of favour Bayern under Kovac
The 2014 World Cup Golden Boot winner has fallen out of favour under the Croatian and failed to get off the bench in Bayern’s last two fixtures against AEK and Dortmund. To compound the Colombian’s frustration, James suffered a knee injury last Tuesday that is expected to keep him out of action until January.
James and Kovac have reportedly not seen eye to eye this season, with the player reportedly shouting “We’re not at Frankfurt!” after a three-game winless streak. According to Bild, James also refused the hand of sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic after being confined to the bench for a Bundesliga game against Mainz.
Bild also reported that James reported late for the meet-up before the game against Dortmund, which the German daily stated was the reason for his place on the bench at the Westfalenstadion. Furthermore, Kovac has apparently not been impressed with the Colombian’s work rate during pre-game warm-ups.
Unless there is a radical change in James’ current status at Bayern, it seems inevitable he will be returned to Real Madrid next summer, although his agent has reportedly been rooting around for a potential exit route in January.
