James Rodriguez was a fan favorite at Goodison Park.

The Colombian international participated in 26 games in all competitions with the Toffees last season. He got to score 6 goals and provide 9 assists.

James arrived at Everton thanks to former boss Carlo Ancelotti. Both knew each other from their time at Real Madrid, and Ancelotti had plans for the 30-year-old player to be a fundamental part of his sports project.

But with the departure of Ancelotti and the arrival of Rafa Benitez, James’s situation turned around. Benitez told the player directly that it would not be part of his plans and that they would negotiate his departure from the club.

One of Benitez’s arguments to get rid of James is the salary burden. The player was the highest paid on the Toffees roster at £ 200,000 a week.

During the summer, Everton negotiated with Porto and the Turkish side Basaksehir, but no agreement could be reached for the player.

The club recently announced that the Colombian was leaving the club to join the Qatari outfit Al-Rayyan for an undisclosed fee.

At the beginning of the season, Rodriguez compares his situation with that of Kun Aguero when he joined Barca. In an interview with El Espanol, the player said: “Kun Agüero went to Barcelona, ​​and now Messi is leaving. They just happen to be little breadsticks, partners.

“Those are the things that football has. The same thing happened to me. I go to Everton, practically because Ancelotti was there and look, now Carlo is gone.

“I don’t know what is going to happen. In football and in life, we don’t know anything. Let’s see what happens. “