Real Madrid playmaker James Rodriguez has insisted that he wants to stay and fight for his place with the La Liga giants after a summer filled with speculation.
The Colombian international looked set for an exit ahead of the new season after struggling to make an impact at the Bernabeu last year.
Having failed to establish himself as a regular starter under either Rafa Benitez or Zinedine Zidane, the former Monaco star’s frustration appeared set to continue with an inability to displace Real’s preferred attacking trident.
After recently changing his mind, Marca claim that the La Liga giants were forced to drop their interest in Andre Gomes, who has subsequently moved on to Barcelona this week.
Whether or not it’s a smart decision to keep Rodriguez remains to be seen, but it’s clear that the 25-year-old is ready to start afresh and work hard to make his time in the Spanish capital work in the long-term.
“I will fight to earn my place. That’s my dream,” he told Marca.
“I will stay at Real Madrid, I will succeed here.
“I know that the club received an €85m bid for me, but I’m not leaving.”
Rodriguez rose to prominence with his form for both Porto and Monaco as well as with Colombia at the 2014 World Cup, which in turn led to his big breakthrough with Real that same year.
It hasn’t all gone to plan though as speculation off the pitch continued, and that perhaps took its toll on his performances on the pitch.
Nevertheless, with Real seemingly looking short of options in the transfer market this summer, Zidane may keep faith in many of the individuals already at his disposal and hope that they can build on their Champions League triumph last season.