Champions League finalists Liverpool, Europa League finalists Arsenal and simply sixth-placed Manchester United are being linked with a move for James Rodriguez of Real Madrid, according to reports in the Daily Mirror.
Rodriguez, 27, is currently on loan at Bundesliga outfit Bayern Munich, but the German giants have recently opted against signing the Colombian permanently for £37m.
This has opened the door to a flurry of interest from Premier League clubs, as further reported by the Mirror, with Manchester United and Arsenal alongside Liverpool forming the trio of clubs who have expressed an interest in bringing Rodriguez to the English top-flight.
Having shot to global prominence at the 2014 World Cup, Rodriguez earned a transfer to Real Madrid from AS Monaco for a reported £63m. During his time in the Spanish capital, the Colombian has had mixed success, scoring 28 times in 77 appearances, but was loaned out to Bayern at the start of the 2017/18 campaign.
During his time in Munich, the playmaker has scored 14 goals in 43 appearances, but his inconsistency has resulted in Bayern manager Niko Kovac not consistently selecting the Colombian in his starting XI.
Bayern’s rejection of Rodriguez, at a comparatively low £37m, does unquestionably represent value in an extremely inflated transfer window, and the Bundesliga side’s decision to not take up their right to buy James may raise eyebrows from the Premier League’s chasing trio as to the player’s attitude and work ethic, both on and off the field.
At £37m, any of Liverpool, Arsenal and United would be receiving a proven player at a fee that does represent value, and particularly with the departure of Aaron Ramsey to Juventus, Rodriguez could fit into Unai Emery’s Arsenal plans for the 2019/2020 campaign.
For Liverpool, Rodriguez would represent an upgrade on the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri, as Jurgen Klopp’s side look to push Manchester City once again for the title and mount yet another impressive domestic and European campaign.
The Reds’ pursuing Rodriguez may depend on the outcome of their Champions League final against Spurs on June 1st in Madrid, as Jurgen Klopp goes in search of his first trophy since arriving on Merseyside in 2015.
