The assumption was that a World Cup Golden Boot winner would need some persuading to sign for a club who finished in 12th in their league. Not James Rodriguez.
“I spoke to Carlo and I said yes. It wasn’t: ‘I’ll think about it and then I’ll tell you’ I said yes,” stated the Colombian. The presence of Carlo Ancelotti, a manager who had also signed him for Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, has given Everton a new pulling power but the Italian supported his flagship buy’s version of events.
Some players have equivocated about joining Everton in recent years. One or two may have seen it as a consolation prize. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, another summer target, preferred to go to Tottenham. Rodriguez, and his fellow recruits Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure, passed Ancelotti's test.
“There is a key question when you talk to a player: do you really want to come?” he said. “There are some that say yes and others that say: ‘Maybe, I have to think about this.’ These three players we signed simply answered yes, full stop.
"I want to have players that have a desire to come to this club, full stop. The player that doesn’t have this desire, we move on. These three players said yes, simple answer.”
It may have been easier to get answers in the affirmative at some of the clubs Ancelotti has managed in the last two decades.
Rodriguez has spent the last six seasons at two of the world’s most decorated teams in Real and Bayern. Everton have not won silverware for 25 years but an ambitious signing believes they can end the longest wait in their history.
“Why not? It is a club that means business,” Rodriguez said. “There are a lot of serious-minded people at all levels who mean to achieve and that means winning trophies. That won’t happen overnight but I have seen real positive signs. I look around me and I see winners, on the field and in the backroom staff.”
Ancelotti was a factor in his decision. “It influenced me a lot,” he said. “It is great to be back to work with the manager again. We enjoyed a great season together in 2014-15 and we have a great relationship. Six or seven years ago I had something good.”
He scored 17 goals in that 2014-15 campaign, after the six that made him the World Cup’s leading scorer.
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Predictions for first round of Premier League matches
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SATURDAY: Fulham v Arsenal (3.30pm kick off UAE): The Gunners already have one trophy in the bag after beating champions Liverpool in the Community Shield, albeit on penalties. Manager Mikel Arteta remains confident that captain and key attacker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will sign a new deal. Whether he does or not, could decide how successful Arsenal's season will be. Newly-promoted Fulham's biggest signing for the new season has been Brighton winger Anthony Knockaert for €11m. Prediction: Fulham 1 Arsenal 3. Reuters -
Crystal Palace v Southampton (6pm): Palace will be looking to put that last season firmly behind them after an awful finish that saw them lose seven of their final eight games. Manager Roy Hodgson will be hoping attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze, signed from QPR for €16m, can help give them a boost on the goals front. It remains to be seen whether star forward Wilfried Zaha remains at the club very much longer. Southampton have looked to strengthen their defence with the signings of full-back Kyle Walker-Peters and centre-half Mohammed Salisu. Prediction: Crystal Palace 1 Southampton 2. Reuters -
Liverpool v Leeds United (8.30pm): Leeds are back in the top-flight for first time in 16 seasons and straight in at the deep end. Manager Marcelo Bielsa might be highly regarded by many in the game but the Argentine will have to pull off something stunning to beat the champions at Anfield. The Yorkshiremen have spent big on the likes of forward Rodrigo and winger Helder Costa - signed for €30m and €17m, respectively. Jurgen Klopp has kept faith in the same players that ended Liverpool's 30-year title drought last season but it is a squad with no weak spots and will take some stopping again. Prediction: Liverpool 2 Leeds 1. -
West Ham United v Newcastle United (11pm): Newcastle are a club stuck in limbo again after the collapse of a Saudi-backed takeover. The Toon Army can find some comfort, though, from their summer signings. Striker Callum Wilson should be a good buy for €20m from Bournemouth, while midfielders Ryan Fraser and Jeff Hendrick are experienced players signed for nothing. And in Allan Saint-Maximin they already have one of the league's most exciting attackers. The season hasn't started and already cracks are appearing at West Ham. Captain Mark Noble took to social media voicing his displeasure at winger Grady Diangana's exit to West Bromwich Albion. Prediction: West Ham 1 Newcastle 3. PA -
SUNDAY: West Bromwich Albion v Leicester City (5pm): A good test for Slaven Bilic's newly-promoted West Brom who go up against Leicester, who narrowly missed out on a place in this season's Champions League. In Jamie Vardy, the Foxes had the Premier League's top scorer with 23 goals and they also strengthened their backline by signing Belgian international full-back Timothy Castagne from Atalanta for €23m. Bilic, meanwhile, was delighted that winger Grady Diangana joined on a permanent deal from West Ham after a successful season on loan at the Hawthorns. Prediction: West Brom 1 Leicester 1. AFP -
Tottenham Hotspur v Everton (7.30pm): Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti certainly cannot say he has not been backed in the transfer market, with centre-midfield pair Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure, teenage defender Niels Nkounkou and attacking midfielder James Rodriguez all moving to Merseyside. Jose Mourinho has also been busy splashing the cash at Spurs with midfielders Giovani Lo Celso and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, plus wing-back Matt Doherty, all signing up. Two of the most successful managers in European football will be looking for a flying start to the new season. Prediction: Tottenham 1 Everton 0. Reuters -
MONDAY: Sheffield United v Wolves (9pm): After a quiet summer in the transfer market, Wolves sprang into action with a £35m move for 18-year-old Porto attacker Fabio Silva, overtaking last season's top scorer Raul Jimenez as club record signing. Blades manager Chris Wilder needed a new goalkeeper at Bramall Lane - Dean Henderson turned down another loan deal to challenge David de Gea for the No 1 spot at Manchester United - resulting in Aaron Ramsdale arriving from Bournemouth for £18.5m. Prediction: Sheffield United 1 Wolves 2. AFP -
Brighton v Chelsea (11.15pm): Frank Lampard has already admitted the pressure will soar at Chelsea after a recruitment drive that has seen them fork out nearly £200m on the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva, Kai Havertz and Malang Sarr. A fourth-place finish secured them a Champions League spot last season but they lost to Arsenal in the FA Cup final and owner Roman Abramovich will be looking for silverware this time roudnd. For Brighton manager Graham Potter, a very different set of expectations. Survival is the sole target, anything more than that a bonus. Prediction: Brighton 0 Chelsea 2. AFP
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Last season brought a mere eight appearances in La Liga and Rodriguez admitted the prospect of regular football was part of his motivation to trade Madrid for Merseyside. His fortunes have faded but the 29-year-old believes his best football could be in the future. “I certainly hope so,” he said. “I am still young.”
Ancelotti argued Rodriguez is better in some ways than the player he first signed six years ago. “Now he has more knowledge about football, about tactics,” he said. “I think the time he spent in Madrid and in Munich helped him to be a better player with more knowledge and more complete.”
The dilemma for Ancelotti is where to use a flair player whose versatility adds to his appeal. “I think he has the quality of a No 10,” said Ancelotti, though, if that makes Rodriguez an upgrade on Gylfi Sigurdsson, Everton often did not use one last season.
“But he played really well in my first year in Madrid as a midfielder. We played three and he played on the left with [Luka] Modric and Toni Kroos and had a fantastic season. He played also really well as a right winger with Real Madrid. He can play everywhere but he is not going to play as a defender, that’s for sure.”
