#3 James Rodriguez
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Real Madrid President Florentino Perez must wince whenever he recalls James Rodriguez’ transfer, with the Colombian bought for a huge fee after Madrid succumbed to the hype surrounding him post the 2014 FIFA World Cup. However, James could turn out to be a brilliant bargaining tactic in Real Madrid's pursuit of Eden Hazard, as part of a swap deal.
The Colombian has struggled for game time under Zinedine Zidane, with the situation unlikely to change. Chelsea came incredibly close to prying him away from Madrid in January, only for James to pull the plug at the last minute as Zidane promised him greater game time. Those promises have failed to come to fruition, which all but guarantees James’ move away from the club.
With 17 goal contributions (12 assists, 5 goals) from 24 games, James is only marginally better than Hazard in numbers, but they do not do justice to the fact that his involvement occurs once every 263 minutes, which Hazard betters comfortably. The Colombian is restricted when he plays for Madrid, and Chelsea boss Conte could offer him more freedom by building the attack around him – a situation he thrives on when playing for Colombia.
