James Rodriguez is reportedly eager for a transfer to the Premier League as Arsenal show show an interest in the Bayern Munich and Real Madrid misfit.
The Colombia international has had a difficult few years but could undoubtedly do a job at Arsenal after Mesut Ozil’s falling out of favour with Unai Emery this season.
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After bit-part roles at both Real and Bayern, Rodriguez could perhaps finally get the move best suited to his talents by becoming a key figure at the Emirates Stadium.
According to Don Balon, this seems to be a big motivation for the 27-year-old as he makes a move to England his priority, as he has made clear in a meeting with Real Madrid in the last 24 hours.
The report suggests Rodriguez has no plans to extend his stay at the Allianz Arena after a two-season loan in Germany, and Don Balon claim that while a move back to Madrid is something of a dream of his, he realistically knows Arsenal could currently be better placed to offer him the kind of starring role he wants.
The Spanish outlet also link Rodriguez with Napoli, but stress that he would favour the chance to move to the Premier League.
It’s also claimed in the piece that he’d cost €65million – so not cheap and not the kind of fee Arsenal tend to pay often.
Still, it seems likely Ozil is being frozen out by Emery at the moment after a surprise lack of action this season, and replacing a big name and talent like that for such a key role in the team is never going to be cheap.
These developments reported by Don Balon suggest the prospect of Rodriguez moving to Arsenal has just taken a potentially significant step closer.