Where Has It All Gone Wrong for James Rodriguez at Real Madrid?

Play had only just commenced, and inside the Bernabeu it was warm, summer vibes lingering, the mood expectant. 

On the right flank, James Rodriguez received the ball from Danilo and looked up. Ahead of him were nine Real Betis shirts, eight of them packed tightly into two lines of four and the other looking to close the passing angle. Typically in such scenarios, in the opening minutes, the ball would be shared and worked across the pitch, poking and probing, the scene and the opponent assessed.

But not here. 

After once glance ahead, James whipped a ball with speed and precision onto the head of Gareth Bale.

Goal.

After a 0-0 stalemate with Sporting Gijon six nights earlier, it had taken the Colombian only 93 seconds to kick-start Real Madrid's season. Half an hour later, he'd taken it into another gear, smashing home a free-kick from a tight angle off the inside of the post. Then came another strike, a bicycle kick this time. 

As statements go, it was an emphatic way of saying "I'm baaaaack." This, after all, following a summer pause, felt like a continuation of 2014-15, a season in which James had sparkled and that had included those strikes against Deportivo La Coruna, Granada, Almeria and Malaga. 

"A night to remember for James," said Marca in the wake of the destruction. 

"The 'untouchable one' is James," said AS. 

Here at Bleacher Report, this writer said that the 2014 FIFA World Cup sensation (along with Bale) had given Madrid "a glimpse into post-Ronaldo future."

What the bloody hell has happened since, then?

Francisco Seco/Associated Press

It is difficult to fully comprehend what has followed for James since that night in late August.

From a position of seemingly infinite possibilities, the descent for the Colombian has been steep and rapid. The goals have dried up, and so have the moments of brilliance. Injuries haven't helped, and nor did a shift in collective emphasis under a new manager. There have also been rumours—hurtful ones—and off-field incidents. Confidence has evaporated in the process and, with it, form. Trust. 

Suddenly, James looks everything he once wasn't: timid, unsure, restrained, hurt, distracted, devoid of clarity. 

"James from Ballon d'Or to barn door," said AS recently. Later, it added that Madrid were prepared to listen to offers for the Colombian and Isco, dubbing them the "problem kids."

This is not how it was meant to go. But the fact that it has is a reminder of how, sometimes, circumstances can be everything; one thing can change, and suddenly everything does. 

Back in the summer, after a gruelling debut season in the Spanish capital that had involved campaigns in six competitions, James, unlike the majority of his team-mates, went to the Copa America. It meant he returned to his club late and tired. Halfway through pre-season, he also returned to a team that was changing. 

Following the axing of Carlo Ancelotti, Rafa Benitez was overseeing a shift in dynamic: Bale was being trialled through the middle; Cristiano Ronaldo's role was changing; Casemiro was being introduced; direct wingers in Lucas Vazquez and Denis Cheryshev were, too. 

Benitez's objective, an understandable one, was to take Madrid away from their technical existence of Ancelotti's second year. He wanted his side to be faster. More powerful. More robust. He spoke of physicality and altering the balance, the suggestion being that the club would navigate away from the dynamic that James' arrival in 2014 had played a part in creating.

Immediately it felt awkward for James, but the Betis eruption suggested it could work.  

Then he got injured. 

CRISTINA QUICLER/Getty Images

In a season of significant moments for the midfielder, the knee problem he picked up while on international duty with Colombia feels huge in retrospect.

Stuck on the sidelines for two months, James watched Madrid's transitional phase unfold without him; Benitez started to construct a new-look outfit, and the Colombian was a mere afterthought. No longer was he integral; he'd become peripheral. In early November against Sevilla, he finally returned and scored, but then came the Clasico. 

In Benitez's out-of-character, politically motivated XI, James started along with all the Galacticos. They were a mess. Structure was absent. So was an encompassing idea. Barcelona ran riot. Though James wasn't alone in being awful, the events of that afternoon seemed to reinforce to Benitez the reasons why he'd moved away from such a setup. 

Why James wasn't for him. 

In the aftermath, when Madrid went to Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk, the Colombian was left on the bench; when they went south for that fateful night in Cadiz, he was included among the second-stringers. On the occasions he did start, he was routinely the first one subbed. 

He hasn't been the same since. Not at all. Not even under personable new manager Zinedine Zidane has the derailment been rectified. 

The Bernabeu now whistles James, talk of his potential departure swirls and criticism is abundant: It's a reminder of how circumstances can be everything.