Bayern Munich agree to sign James Rodriguez on two-year loan

James Rodriguez will sign for Bayern Munich on a two-year loan deal from Real Madrid.

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The Colombian national team captain, 25, struggled to become a regular for Real over the past three seasons but the striker will now add extra firepower to Bayern’s attack under his former boss at Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti.

Despite being a bit-part player at the Santiago Bernabeu, James has won two UEFA Champions League titles, a La Liga and two Club World Cups during his time in Spain, plus he scored 36 goals and added 41 assists in 111 appearances since joining Real from Monaco in 2014.

With Chelsea, Manchester United and others said to be in for James over the summer, the South American star has decided to head to Germany with the Bundesliga giants now possessing a huge attacking threat as he will link up with Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Muller, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben.

The two-year loan deal will run until June 30, 2019 and Bayern confirmed they will also have the option to buy James permanently. After having a medical in Munich he will fly out with the team this weekend for their 12-day tour of Singapore and China.

Speaking about the acquisition, Bayern’s chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge revealed James was Ancelotti’s “biggest wish” for this offseason.

“We’re delighted we’ve been able to complete this transfer. Signing James Rodriguez was our coach Carlo Ancelotti’s biggest wish, following their successful spell working together in Madrid,” Rummenigge said. “James is a very versatile player. He’s a goalscorer himself, he sets up a lot of goals and on top of that he’s great from set-pieces. There’s no question that this transfer further increases the quality in our team.”

That sigh you can hear is the rest of the Bundesliga, as Bayern look certain to win a sixth-straight German title this season.

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