Man Utd’s James Rodriguez snub explained – but Sir Alex knew better

Manchester United reportedly felt James Rodriguez was not suited to the Premier League and snubbed chances to sign the forward.

Scout Jose Margoya reported back to Red Devils’ chiefs about the Colombia international a decade ago. He was a big fan of the talented playmaker but the Old Trafford outfit did not see things the same way.

James was playing for Argentinian side Banfield at the time and ended up moving to Porto in 2010. Having transferred to Monaco in 2013, he caught the eye when starring for Colombia at the 2014 World Cup.

A move to Real Madrid followed but the South American failed to hit the heights at the Bernabeu. Two seasons on loan at Bayern Munich did not earn him a permanent switch to Germany.

Everton took him on a free transfer in the summer and he has enjoyed a solid start to life at Goodison Park. It could have been very different had United taken a punt back in 2010, as Margoya’s colleague, Marcelo Teixeira, explained.

“Jose Mayorga, was a big fan of James,” he told the Daily Telegraph. “Mayorga always included James’ name in his reports, but the evaluation from the club was that his playing style didn’t suit the Premier League.”

 

Ferguson saw James potential

James, 29, has bagged three Premier League golas and provided three assists already. His form helped the Toffees to the top of the table although they have now slipped to fifth.

Four straight wins to open the campaign have been followed by a draw and two losses.

 

The Merseysiders take on Manchester United on Saturday hoping to put things right. It seems as though he could have already been at the Theatre of Dreams had things played out differently.

Sir Alex Ferguson was keen to sign him in 2012 but nothing materialised.

“There was some kind of talk there,” James told Rio Ferdinand’s YouTube show ‘The Locker Room. “My agent (Jorge Mendes) has a great relationship with the club.

“We always dreamed of getting to a big club, and since I was a child, I always admired Manchester. I always saw those teams with Rio together with [Ryan] Giggs and [Paul] Scholes.

“There were a lot of prodigious players and I wanted to get there in that year. But it didn’t happen.”

Carlo Ancelotti, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

James will hope to inflict further misery on United this weekend, with pressure mounting on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The Norwegian’s side sit 15th in the standings and were humbled by Istanbul Basaksehir in the Champions League this week.

 

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