Why Real Madrid Are Better off Selling Isco Than James Rodriguez This Summer

With the transfer window set to close this week, many major clubs in Europe are looking to seal one last piece of business to set themselves up for the 2016/17 season. But for Real Madrid, the most likely scenario is outgoing deals rather than any new signings.

As has been the case for much of the summer, indeed much of the time since Zinedine Zidane took over midway through last season, talk continues to centre on one of two attacking midfielders departing the Santiago Bernabeu: Isco or James Rodriguez, both of whom have struggled for game time over the last year or so.

Marca have again reported that the idea of the club is to sell one or the other, with the head coach preferring to offload Isco and James being the choice of the hierarchy. Money might be the defining factor in the end, but it's Zidane who has the right of things in a straight one-vs.-one choice—James should be kept, and Isco should be sold.

One or the other

As last season under Zidane showed, there is little scope for Real Madrid to keep both players and ensure they are contributing to the team. While both can be in the matchday squad and come off the bench, often those will be dead minutes, simply time on the pitch when there's little at stake other than a chance to rest and ensure the fitness of the usual starters.

With the added involvement of Marco Asensio this season after he impressed more than both James and Isco in pre-season, the attacking-midfield options at Zidane's disposal are varied and plentiful, even with a couple of forwards out injured in the early stages of 2016/17.

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Simply put, if both Isco and James remain, they'll only play a marginal role in Real Madrid's season, while making the decision to keep one and sell the other could feasibly force the remaining player into a much more prominent role as an irregular starter and first-sub option.

Quite aside from the on-pitch ramifications, it also means Zidane won't be continually questioned over why he brought one on before the other. There will be no need for political substitutions—bringing one on for the last 15 minutes to avoid being seen as ignoring that player—and there will be more chances for others to be involved, including Mateo Kovacic or Mariano.

Three or four

There are different factors to consider when judging why James is the better choice than Isco to retain, and the natural starting point is tactics.

Although Zidane has favoured a 4-3-3 since coming to the job, that has altered subtly at the start of this term, being a much more midfield-inclined 4-1-4-1 to give balance out of possession and numbers in attack when going forward. With the central midfielders—Luka Modric and Toni Kroos usually but also Kovacic on the opening game week—now responsible for getting further forward and supporting the front man rather than orchestrating from deep, James is a natural choice to impact.

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Some of his best moments for club and country come when the No. 10 is allowed to surge from the second line, into the box and often beyond the centre-forward, arriving late for a cut-back or deflection to fall his way. His goalscoring is, of course, superior to Isco's record, being much more of a goal threat than a playmaker like the Spaniard, but it's the Colombian's positional work that is more important here.

From wide in a three-man attack, both have had some limited success, but both shone more from in-from-out-wide roles in a 4-4-2, another alternative for Zidane as the season goes on.

Viability of sale

With the split at the top of the club over which player should be sold, although it might not be the determining factor, it's certainly worth noting who would earn the club more and who costs the most by staying.

James has by far the higher transfer value, being a big-money signing and linked with higher-profile clubs—Marca reports PSG, Manchester United and Juventus as admirers, while Isco is currently linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur by the Mirror (h/t Marca)—but is also on the biggest wages. While he has previously proven worthy of that outlay, James being on the bench 25 times a season isn't going to yield an optimal return.

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On the other hand, it takes only a month or two out injured for one of Modric or Kroos for James to really get an extended run in the side, something former Colombian hero Tino Asprilla says he warrants, per Onda Cero (h/t Marca):

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If James is featured in three or four straight matches and performs poorly, then it is fine if he is demoted to [Real Madrid] Castilla or sold to another team, but he should have his chance to shine. It's not a coincidence that he had a superb season under [ex-coach Carlo] Ancelotti because he was a regular starter and all of the sudden he struggles under Zidane with limited minutes. We're talking about the 2014 FIFA World Cup top goal scorer, Zidane should trust him and respect him a little more. If I were him, I would stay and fight for a spot.

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Commercially, there's no comparing the two. James is a big part of Real's fan appeal in South America, and there were rumours—soon debunked—that his signing initially saw Madrid sell more than a third of a million shirts in two days. The figures might have been lower, but it still indicates his popularity and thus, in turn, the team's.

There will be suitors for both players if available, but the pool of teams who might pay €30 million for Isco is far larger than those who could afford double that, or more, for James.

Who offers more?

Bottom line: James is the better all-round player when fit and confident.

Isco has a tendency to glide through games, looking fantastic when his team is dominating and he's able to find space, but often he goes missing when there is sustained defending to do, counter-attacks are the only way to attack or when teams crowd out the areas around and inside the penalty box. A clever, scheming player he is, but consistency and aggressive determination are not in Isco's makeup.

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James, too, has had poor spells of inconsistent form and has also had injuries to contend with over the last year, but his ceiling is clearly higher than that of his team-mate's. If his time on the pitch is made more regular as a result of Isco's departure, there's every chance he'll find that level more often, more quickly.

With Zidane's tactics and reported preference of keeping James, the club deciding to side with the head coach will also strengthen his position and reputation, showing it is indeed he who calls the shots. "I've seen good things from James when he was involved in the game and, as you say, yes he will be [staying]," said the boss when pressed on James' future after the Celta Vigo game, per Marca, and it would be a mistake on the club's part to now threaten Zidane's authority by overruling that statement.

A more aggressive attacker, a higher-profile player and the manager's choice—everything points to Real Madrid being better off with James in the squad and Isco offloaded.

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