James Rodriguez’s move to Qatar side Al Rayyan from Everton is already being questioned, despite him only managing one appearance for the club.
The Colombian midfielder brought an end to his time at Goodison Park last month, just a year after a move from Real Madrid.
The transfer was met with some regret on Merseyside, where had shone in spells under Carlo Ancelotti last season.
The Italian’s departure for Real Madrid in the summer seemingly led to Everton and Rodriguez wanting to part ways, though, with the Blues particularly keen to get rid of his wages.
That debut has been labelled a nightmare, and it seems that’s the opinion in his homeland, where his decision to leave Everton is already being questioned.
“Who tricked James Rodriguez?” is the headline of an opinion piece from journalist Carlos Gonzalez on Colombia’s edition of Marca, who says Rodriguez is ‘supposed to be at the best age’ for a footballer but has taken an ‘incomprehensible step’ to Qatar.
He watched the recent defeat to Al Duhail and describes it as like ‘being stabbed with a knife’ given he’s a fan of Rodriguez.
He labels the atmosphere at the game ‘dreary’, the play in the game ‘grotesque’ and the level overall as ‘abysmal’.
And that makes him question why Rodriguez decided to leave Everton for the country, believing it is ‘very sad’ if he did so simply for the money.
For him, it’s hard to understand why a player like Rodriguez wants to play in a league like the one on offer in Qatar, and he asks whether the midfielder has been fooled or ‘let himself be fooled’.
For him, the whole thing is a ‘pity’, with it seemingly clear early on that the player should have stayed at Goodison Park than put himself through life in Qatar.
