Zidane appointment has been bad for James, says father

James Rodriguez’s father believes Zinedine Zidane’s appointment as Real Madrid coach is hurting his son’s career in the Spanish capital.

James arrived at Real Madrid under Carlo Ancelotti in 2014 and enjoyed a fine first season, but his form has dipped as of late and has become the subject of boos from the stands in the Santiago Bernabeu.

However his father, Wilson Rodriguez, says form is always going to fluctuate.

“I think it is normal, football’s like this,” he said.

“Injuries play a big part, and make it harder for a footballer to maintain his level.”

Despite that, he does not think Zidane has helped his son’s cause.

“[Ancelotti and Zidane] are two very different managers and the fact that he isn’t playing at the moment doesn’t mean anything, but it’s obvious that change of manager was bad for him,” he said.

Wilson was a professional footballer himself and while he never hit the heights his son has been able to reach, he was renowned for scoring goals from distance.

“I was able to score many goals thanks to this skill,” he said.

“The best goal I ever scored was almost from the halfway line against Navarro Montaya, when I was playing for Deportes Tolima.

“It’s genetic. Even though you must practice a lot, you are born with this ability.

“You must start with something. James’ shot isn’t so bad.

“Although it’s true that he has achieved much more in his career then I was able to.

“When I was playing there weren’t businessmen who could just relocate you from your country and everything was more difficult than it is now.

“He is a symbol of how much things have changed, athletes are much more athletic now than when I was playing.”