When the final whistle blew on Wednesday night in Charlotte, North Carolina, James Rodriguez jogged towards the center circle and fell to his knees. Colombia had defeated Uruguay 1-0 in an emotionally charged Copa America semi-final, playing the second half a man down after Daniel Munoz was sent off in the 45th minute.
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Rodriguez has been the player of the tournament. His six assists in one Copa America are unmatched by any other player in the competition’s 108-year history. Thanks largely to Rodriguez, a throwback central creator, Colombia will play in their third-ever final — Sunday’s showdown against defending champions Argentina in Miami.
Rodriguez has gone from golden boy to elder statesman for his national team. To get here, the 33-year-old has endured a tumultuous path with Colombia that nearly ended three years ago. His transformation at this Copa America has been remarkable, considering how far he had fallen.
As the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte reverberated with thousands of yellow-clad Colombian supporters, Rodriguez laid on his back and lifted his arms in celebration. Seconds later, three of his teammates ran to his side to embrace him. As the tears flowed, they lifted their captain off the ground, completing Rodriguez’s resurrection as Colombia’s fallible leader.
The scene was reminiscent of a similar moment in Qatar when Argentina won the 2022 World Cup. Lionel Messi stood in celebratory shock after Gonzalo Montiel’s winning penalty gave Argentina the title over France. From pariah to superhero, Messi finally stood atop football’s mountain — and like Rodriguez, he had done so after slipping down that slope on so many occasions.
Rodriguez is to Colombia what Messi is to Argentina. Tomorrow, both No. 10s will battle for South America’s ultimate prize. Messi’s legacy is secured but Rodriguez has one final step to take to be crowned Colombia’s best player of the modern era.
“James is only one of the team’s important players.”
The message was short yet stern. In 2019, Colombia’s manager, Carlos Queiroz, put his foot down. Before a crucial CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier that year, the former Real Madrid head coach implied that Colombia would no longer be a one-man team.
“There’s a need to look for the future,” Queiroz added.
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Colombia was at the end of a successful eight-year cycle that included Rodriguez’s remarkable performance at the 2014 World Cup. But his club form had become a problem. After a stellar start at Real Madrid, Rodriguez, who was voted the best midfielder in La Liga of the 2014-15 season over teammates Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, quickly became the odd man out in the Spanish capital.
Rodriguez’s success in Spain was merely a flash. Perceived spats with then-Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane preceded another fracture with Rafael Benitez, who coached Real Madrid before the Frenchman from 2015-2016. In Colombia, the reports of Rodriguez’s discontent at the club level had grown tiresome. He had so many supporters back home, but Rodriguez was beginning to lose in the court of public opinion.
Winning the Golden Boot at the 2014 World Cup was an unthinkable achievement for a Colombian footballer. Rodriguez was awarded the Puskas Award that same year for his incredible goal against Uruguay at that tournament. Good looks, a magical left foot and global stardom had set Rodriguez on a path that no other Colombian footballer had experienced. It would become more of a burden than a milestone.
Queiroz’s hard stance on Rodriguez preceded a controversial fallout between the two that would lead to the manager’s dismissal. Reports in Colombia suggested that Rodriguez had told Queiroz not to call him if he was going to be a substitute. A once united national team was now toxic, and Rodriguez was at the center of the drama. Qualifier losses to Uruguay and Ecuador by a combined score of 9-1 were too much for the manager to endure.
“There has been a short circuit within the team that Queiroz was unable to manage,” said Colombian journalist Carlos Antonio Velez in 2020. “What am I referring to? A fracture between him and our star, James Rodriguez.”
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Additionally, a report of a dressing-room altercation between Rodriguez and Colombian striker Luis Muriel eventually ostracized Rodriguez from the national team. When Colombian Reinaldo Rueda replaced Queiroz in 2021, he left Rodriguez, who had already signed with Everton, off the squad for two crucial World Cup qualifiers and the Copa America in Brazil.
“They’ve disrespected me,” Rodriguez said on an Instagram livestream before the tournament. He then released a statement on social media. “I was surprised by the communication that came from the staff, saying that I would not be needed and to focus on my recovery, a process that I have already completed,” it read. “It’s a decision that fills me with so much sadness.”
Rueda joined a lengthy list of managers that had rifts with Rodriguez. “Claudio Ranieri, Rafa Benitez, Zinedine Zidane, Nico Kovac, Carlos Queiroz and, now, Reinaldo Rueda,” Velez said on Colombian television. “After so many inconveniences, one can deduce that it’s not a pattern, but rather one person.”
Colombia reached the semi-final of that Copa America, losing to eventual champions Argentina in a penalty shootout. Rueda’s decision to exclude Rodriguez looked like the right one, although the manager did allow Rodriguez to rejoin the team during Colombia’s unsuccessful qualifying campaign for Qatar 2022.
During that process, which was Rodriguez’s worst moment of his international career, Colombia produced a new star. Luis Diaz was named 2021 Copa America’s most outstanding player and leading scorer alongside Messi. Unlike Rodriguez, Diaz was a player whose skills were ideal for the fast-paced nature of European football. His move from Porto (where Rodriguez had starred from 2010 to 2013) to Liverpool coincided with Rodriguez’s exile at Qatari club Al-Rayyan.
Diaz’s trajectory from poverty in Colombia to England’s Premier League immediately endeared him to the people of Colombia. He represented hope for the future after Colombia failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup. Meanwhile, Rodriguez had been forgotten. Rueda had leaned too heavily on Colombia’s veteran players and he paid for it with his job. The blame, it seemed, landed squarely on Rodriguez’s shoulders.
Three years later, Colombia is enjoying a resurgence on the international stage. Since hiring Argentinian Nestor Lorenzo, the team have not lost a match. They enter Sunday’s Copa America final on a 28-game unbeaten streak. Lorenzo, 58, was the chief assistant under Jose Pekerman during Colombia’s 2014 and 2018 World Cup cycles. He knows what makes a Colombian player tick. He also understood that Rodriguez could regain his superpowers if handed Colombia’s yellow shirt.
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“The first player I went to see when I took the job was James,” Lorenzo told The Athletic this week. “I flew to Qatar to see him and to get his commitment to the national team. He did everything to be here at the Copa America. He showed me a great commitment to the national team, and that is why he’s the captain and the leader.”
Now in Brazil with giants Sao Paulo, but with one foot out the door, Rodriguez has used this Copa America as a late-stage showcase for how talented he still is. His fitness levels have been superb. His vision and accuracy have mesmerized the football world.
“James” is back and Colombia is better for it.
When Rodriguez scored a penalty in Colombia’s 5-0 quarter-final win over Panama, he jogged to the sideline and held his arms outstretched — his trademark celebration from 2014. Diaz placed an imaginary crown on his captain’s head. King James and his Colombian Knights of the Round Table had sent a message.
A decade ago, Diaz was a scrawny 17-year-old from Barrancas with dreams of becoming a professional player. Diaz watched in awe as Rodriguez scored goal after goal at the World Cup, leading Colombia to the quarterfinals for the first time in the country’s history. On Wednesday, following the victory over Uruguay, Diaz was asked about playing with his hero.
“I’ve always let James know, from the moment I joined the national team, that he is my idol,” Diaz said as he fought back tears. “I continue to tell him, ‘You’re phenomenal. I admire you so much and you deserve this’. This is his cup. We’re all watching his best football. We know what he has gone through, what he has suffered. That’s how football works. Football has given him a rematch.”
“He has so much quality and he’s showing how football should be played,” Diaz continued. “We’re a team, a collective, but he deserves this. From watching him on television to sharing time with him, all I can do is enjoy these beautiful moments.”
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Rodriguez and his teammates have inspired a nation of more than 50million people desperate for a title. Colombia won the Copa America as a host nation in 2001, but Argentina withdrew due to security concerns and Brazil sent a reserve team.
Today, there are no doubts about Colombia’s quality. They’ve answered each test with authority. When Rodriguez stepped up to the microphones on Wednesday, after his sixth assist of the tournament had helped him earn the player-of-the-match award, he nearly broke down when he was given credit for Colombia’s magical run to the final.
“I’ve wanted this for almost 13 years,” he said, his voice cracking with emotion. “We’re happy.” And once again, so is Colombia.
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(Top photo: Rodriguez after beating Uruguay this week; by Tim Nwachukwu via Getty Images)
