View: Rodriguez return will prove pivotal for Everton in final season push
James Rodriguez equalled his longest spell on the sidelines for Everton when he was ruled out of the FA Cup tie against Manchester City last weekend.
The Colombian playmaker has missed the club’s last five games in all competitions, with Everton now suffering three consecutive defeats.
Rodriguez also missed five games in December with a calf strain, though ironically they beat Chelsea, Arsenal and Leicester in that period of time.
Now out of the domestic cup competitions after losing to City, Everton have just ten games left to play in the Premier League as they look to secure qualification to Europe.
Carlo Ancelotti will be counting on Rodriguez to return ahead of the end of season final run-in, where his ability will prove crucial in securing Europe.
According to Colombian outlet Caracol Radio, James has revealed that he will return when Everton face Crystal Palace after the international break. James said: “I’ll play again for the next game, April 3, I think. I’m very well thank God and I want to play again.”
This news couldn’t come at a better time for Everton, who have lacked a creative spark in their attacking third.
Ironically, Everton have performed well without Rodriguez in the Premier League this season, winning six of the nine games that he has been absent from.
However, that isn’t to diminish the impact that the former Real Madrid man has had, with Rodriguez having scored five and assisted four in the league.
After winning three games on the spin against Liverpool, Southampton and West Brom, Everton fell to Chelsea and Burnley, playing poorly in both fixtures.
Though it would be harsh to criticised Everton for losing to a far superior team in Manchester City, a third consecutive loss does dent confidence, which is the last thing Everton need at this stage of the season.
Everton have ten games to secure European football, whether that be the less realistic Champions League or the more probable Europa League.
With Abdoulaye Doucoure missing Everton lack energy and that has forced Andre Gomes and Gylfi Sigurdsson to increase their legwork, reducing their ability to be creative on the ball.
Everton need James to return and produce some magic to propel them back up the table as the final set of fixtures get underway. Missing out on Europe would be a huge loss for the club and they have to retain a singular focus.
Rodriguez could help massively, so we hope that he’s fit and raring to go against the Eagles, where Ancelotti will demand that every player makes his minutes count.
In other Everton news, Rio Ferdinand believes that Everton’s lack of depth from the bench saw them lose to Manchester City.