Everton journalist Dave Prentice has been sharing his thoughts on James Rodriguez and his debut season at Goodison Park.
This comes after Prentice made an appearance on a recent episode of the Liverpool Echo’s Royal Blue Podcast where he spoke about a number of subjects concerning the Toffees.
On the subject of Rodriguez and his first season with the Merseyside club, Prentice had this to say on the matter amid talk surrounding his future on Merseyside.
He said: “He’s such a good, gifted footballer and despite what other media pundits may say elsewhere, I thought his first season at Everton was a qualified success.
“The injuries were a big frustration, but equally, when he did play and when he was available – which was more than some people think – he had an influence on the game, he scored some very, very important goals, he created some important goals, his set-piece deliveries were outstanding, his vision was outstanding.
“He’s just a wonderful, gorgeous footballer to watch, and if next season isn’t going to be a season where we’re going to be chasing for the top four, or maybe winning trophies, at least this time, produce some entertaining football and give fans something worth watching, and he can do that.”
Everton signed Rodriguez back in the previous summer window from Spanish club Real Madrid.
During his debut season at Everton, the 29-year-old, who is currently valued at £25.2 million, made 26 appearances across all competitions in which he managed to score six goals and provide nine assists along the way (per Transfermarkt).
TIF Thoughts on Dave Prentice’s comments on Rodriguez and his debut season at Everton…
With the £90k-per-week man ending his debut season at Everton as the club’s highest-rated player for his performances in the Premier League with an overall rating of 7.21/10 according to WhoScored, this shows just how well he settled into the club and English football – and backs up what Prentice had to say about him.
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Moving forward, with Rodriguez recently speaking out about his future (MSN via Liverpool Echo) at the club now that Carlo Ancelotti has moved back to Real Madrid and said that he would be “fine” to stay at Everton for another year, this should put any doubts that some fans may have on his future to bed for the time being.
If Rodriguez does stay at Everton this summer and has a better season in terms of his fitness and availability next year, and if he can replicate the same levels of quality he showed this season, then he would undoubtedly be one of the club’s standout players once again, in our view.
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