Everton are set to confirm the signing of Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez on a three-year deal after the final details of the move were completed on Tuesday.
The Colombian international fell out of favour with Los Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane but is set to reunite with the man who brought him to Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti.
Rodriguez made 125 appearances for the Spanish giants following his £63m arrival in 2014 after shining in that summer's World Cup in Brazil. The 29-year-old also enjoyed a two-year loan spell at Bayern Munich between 2017 and 2019 before returning to Madrid for their La Liga-winning 2019/20 campaign - although he made just two contributions in eight appearances.
Now, the Telegraph reports that despite Rodriguez not yet travelling to Merseyside, the terms of the deal are finalised with no last-minute hitches expected. It's understood Rodriguez will sign a three-year deal with the Toffees, although the transfer fee remains unclear.
Real Madrid were initially demanding €25m for the Colombian's services, but although it's not publicly known whether Everton have matched that valuation, sources close to the player have confirmed a final arrangement has been reached and the deal will go ahead.
The importance of Everton boss Ancelotti can't be understated in persuading Rodriguez to make the switch to Goodison Park, with 90min having revealed last month that he'd requested more input into the recruitment process this summer.
The Italian boss laid out his plans for the talented attacking midfielder and the rebuilding of Everton in talks with the player over the past week, and it's believed that the 29-year-old is willing to take a significant pay-cut just to work with Ancelotti once again.
After signing Rodriguez from Monaco six years ago, Carletto was the man to oversee the Colombian's loan to Bayern in the summer of 2017. The 2017/18 campaign was Rodriguez's most productive campaign since 2014/15 - also under Ancelotti - as he registered 18 goal contributions in 23 Bundesliga appearances.
There's no doubting who the right man is to revitalise Rodriguez's stagnating career.
Source: 90min
