Everton complete signing of James Rodriguez from Real Madrid

The Colombian international has signed a two-year deal at Goodison Park

Ben Burrows
Monday 07 September 2020 20:17 BST
Comments
New Everton midfielder James Rodriguez
New Everton midfielder James Rodriguez (Everton / Twitter)
Leer en Español

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Everton have completed the signing of James Rodriguez from Real Madrid.

The 29-year-old attacking midfielder, who has won eight league titles and two Champions Leagues, has put pen to paper on a two-year deal with the Toffees with the option of a third.

He joins former Napoli midfielder Allan in arriving at Goodison Park this summer as Carlo Ancelotti attempts to revamp his squad ahead of the new Premier League season which begins this weekend.

“I am really, really happy to be at this great club, a club with so much history, and here with a manager who knows me really well,” James told the club website.

“I’m looking forward to achieving great things here – and winning things, which is what everyone’s aim is.

“I’ve come here to try to improve, to get better. I’ve also come here to help the team to win, to play good football – entertaining football.

“I’m convinced, with Carlo and his technical staff, we can achieve big things and one of the big reasons [I signed] was the presence of Carlo Ancelotti.

“I have enjoyed some great times with him previously at two different clubs. That was a massive reason to come here.”

Boss Ancelotti is delighted to be reunited with a player he has managed at Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

“James, as everyone knows, is a fantastic player with a lot of quality and a lot of ability to make assists for the strikers," he added.

“He’s really excited about the project of the club and the fact we want to improve. He was really excited to sign and I didn’t spend time to convince him - he was already convinced.

“Players like James and Allan can help us to be better and we can help them to be better. This kind of connection can be helpful to improve the results, the team and results of this club.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in