James Rodriguez: The Eight-Month Galactico

James Rodriguez: The Eight-Month Galactico


 By Stephen Kountourou



Another one bites the dust. After eight months in Piraeus, former Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez mutually terminated his contract with Olympiakos. Much like his former Madrid compatriot Marcelo, who also left the Greek champions prematurely, it marks the big ambitions but lack of planning and organisation from the people running the club behind the scenes. 


Marcelo's talents were only fleetingly on display in Greece. For James on the other hand his star shone brighter for all to see in the red and white of Olympiakos. But in the end, even that ended quicker than maybe it should have, in a chaotic campaign for the champions. But what was the reason for James' departure?


After the fanfare of Olympiakos signing Marcelo on transfer deadline day, it looked as though Thrylos had struck gold again with the Columbian international also joining. Initially, a loan from Qatari side Al-Rayyan SC the move was made permanent with both parties agreeing to terminate Rodriguez contract. 


Due to the transfer being made official after the deadline for clubs to announce their squads for Europe James was not included in Olympiakos disappointing Europa League campaign. 


Having been given the number 10 shirt by Olympiakos, James made his debut in a 1-2 loss to Aris, which resulted in the sacking of Carlos Corberan. Under fellow former Madridsta Michel was when Thrylos fans got to see the very best of the 31-year-old. 


Throughout his time in Piraeus, he averaged around a goal contribution every other game with 11 in 23 Super League matches. His contribution helped Olympiakos go from 12 points adrift of first before the World Cup break to three points at the start of the playoffs. By the time James left the club, he is in the top five for goal contributions for Thrylos this season.


Unfortunately for the Columbian international, injuries hampered the tail end of his time in Piraeus. James missed the crucial ties against AEK in the Greek Cup and Panathinaikos in the league. Even with these injury problems it was rumoured that he would be offered a year extension to his contract, effectively keeping him at the club until 2024. 



Things changed drastically after the recent defeat in the derby against Panathinaikos. Some on social media were disappointed with Rodriguez recent contributions, labelling him a flop and wishing for his exit from the club. 


While this was unrelated to the reason for his departure, it just so happened that less than a week after that match, it was announced that James would leave the club with his contract prematurely terminated. 


It is still unclear currently what the real reason for why this decision was made before the end of the season is, but there are multiple theories.


With James being one of the highest-paid players at the club, it could have been that his wage demands were beyond what Olympiakos were willing to offer him for a one-year extension. There is also the possibility that the club terminated his contract before the end of the season to free up wages for the inevitable rebuild this summer. 


There have been rumblings that James was unhappy with the club's recent treatment of him, that fan pressure is the reason for the club deciding to release him or that he fell out with the interim manager and director of football, Jose Anigo. The latter three theories seem unlikely as much like Marcelo’s departure the departure on the surface appeared to be amicable.



It is also worth noting that this is an interesting pattern in James’ recent career. Olympiakos has become the third club he has left prematurely, having left Everton after the end of the European transfer for Qatar. He then left his Al-Rayyan SC contract to join the Greek champions. This is not necessarily a slight on Rodriguez but it is still an intriguing pattern.   



Whatever the reason, most supporters were disappointed to lose an exciting big-name player such as James Rodriguez this season. But there is hope, with the more than capable Kostas Fortounis and Pep Biel and with Olympiakos already starting the rebuilding process of the squad for the 2023/24 season, the club can now start moving back in the right direction.      


@SteveKountourou 


Hellas Football 




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