Goodison View: Reported Rodriguez pursuit a risk worth taking
When Carlo Ancelotti arrived as the new Everton manager recently, it was heralded as a moment that would change things for the club.
That was mostly down to his tactical brilliance, long established over a glittering managerial career, but also due to the type of players he would potentially be able to attract to Goodison Park.
Already we have seen a higher calibre of player being linked with a move to the blue half of Merseyside, and Real Madrid playmaker James Rodriguez epitomises that.
The Daily Mirror reported on Saturday that Ancelotti has backed a bold move from the club to try and sign the Colombian international, initially on loan.
The Italian has twice worked with the 28-year-old, at Madrid and with Bayern Munich, and Real boss Zinedine Zidane isn’t thought to have Rodriguez in his long-term plans.
The fact that this would be a loan swoop, at least at first, is why it’s a risk worth taking. That would allow the Toffees to take a look at the player and decide whether he’s still got it before sanctioning a permanent move.
He’s only started four games in La Liga this campaign, but he’s still averaging two key passes per outing. That shows that the creativity is still there, if not the consistency.
This switch could have the sort of rejuvenating effect on Rodriguez’s career as Philippe Coutinho’s transfer to Liverpool from Inter Milan in 2013. At that point he was a boy wonder who’d fallen on hard times. Sounds familiar, no?
It’s not like Gylfi Sigurdsson, Alex Iwobi or Theo Walcott have been blowing anyone away in the attacking midfield positions this season. Putting Rodriguez in with Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, or a rejuvenated Moise Kean, would surely be a much better bet.
This move would be a gamble, it’s true, but is surely one worth taking for the Toffees.
In other Everton news, a Serie A centre back has emerged as a prime January transfer target for Ancelotti.