Real Madrid 3-2 Levante: 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis | La Liga 2019/20

#4 James Rodriguez could be the missing piece in the Madrid puzzle

James Rodriguez

In the past couple of seasons, James Rodriguez plied his trade at Bayern Munich as Zinedine Zidane was seemingly hell-bent on seeing the back of the Colombian. In keeping with that mindset, the midfielder was listed for a transfer during the 2019 off-season and a move to Napoli looked just a signature away.

Yet, nothing of the sort materialised and Madrid eventually pulled the plug on the deal owing to their lengthy injury list.

Inevitably, the number of absences meant that James got another chance to showcase his talent and prove to the French manager that he could have a future in the Spanish capital, despite everything that had transpired previously.

And, on Saturday, he certainly strengthened his credentials for a permanent starting spot.

Featuring as a central midfielder alongside Casemiro and Toni Kroos, Rodriguez ran the show from the centre of the park.

The Colombian looked lively throughout and conjured a sensational assist for Karim Benzema in the first half.

Apart from setting up the Frenchman, the midfielder got into the half-zones between the centre backs and the full backs, thereby always creating a situation of numerical superiority in that area of the pitch.

However, the most impressive aspect of his performance was the hard yards he put in defensively. Often maligned for his propensity to drift out of games, James threw himself about in the middle third and never allowed his Levante counterparts a moment’s peace on the ball.

A few years ago, when Real Madrid were the conquerors of Europe, they functioned with a 4-4-2 system as Isco played slightly further forward than the rest of the midfielders. In essence, the formation bore a 4-3-1-2 shape with Benzema and Ronaldo up top.

Thus, with the arrival of Eden Hazard and Luka Jovic, Los Blancos could revert to their winning formula. And, considering Isco’s recent woes, Rodriguez could fill the void.

Ironically, the player that Zidane wanted to ship out might just end up being the glue that keeps the side together.