Ancelotti dismisses James Rodriguez contract talk speculation
Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that Everton are not actively pursuing contract extension talks with James Rodriguez, although he hasn’t ruled out doing so in the future.
The 29-year old playmaker joined the Toffees in the summer from Real Madrid on a two-year contract, with the option to extend his stay by a further year.
Colombian outlet Marca reported earlier this week that Everton’s Director of Football Marcel Brands was set to prioritise securing a new contract for James this summer, with the club delighted with his impact on Merseyside.
However, speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Ancelotti dismissed speculation that the club were set to begin talks with James over a new deal.
As reported by the Liverpool Echo, Ancelotti said: “We didn’t talk about an extension, I’m not involved in this.
“His contract is quite clear, he has two years plus one option. And so I think we have time to talk about this because he has another year of contract plus an option.
“So I don’t think we need to talk about this. Maybe in the next few months we can talk about this.
“I think he’s happy here.”
Interesting development
It isn’t so much of a surprise that Everton aren’t currently pursuing contract talks with James, purely because there is no immediate need to do so.
The Colombian still has another year left on his contract, potentially two if the Blues decide to trigger their option to extend, and nearer to that time the club might consider opening discussions if that suits all parties.
That said, Ancelotti specifically denied that he had been a part of talks, pouring cold water on speculation that further negotiations had recently taken place.
However Marca’s report specifically mentions that Brands’ priority role in getting James to sign a new deal is set to take place this summer, not in recent times like Ancelotti alluded too, while the Italian did admit that talks could commence in the near future.
Described as “superb” by ex-Everton star Kevin Campbell recently, James is definitely a player that the club will want to keep a hold of. Thankfully there isn’t a rush to do so, especially not with the season still underway and with Europe to play for.
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