James Rodriguez dishes on his status with Bayern and his life in general

James Rodriguez provided Colombia’s The Suso’s Show a look into his life that was captured by Spanish news outlet, Marca. James has a longstanding relationship with the The Suso’s Show that dates back as far as 2013. That level of comfort is likely why the program was given access to James’ home where he opened up on several topics:

From his personal museum to the cinema, they toured all over the home and discussed several moments from throughout his career. Among the items on show were his individual award from the 2014 World Cup, his cap against Poland and several shirts adorning the walls, including those of Monaco, Envigado, Porto and Bayern Munich as well as Real Madrid and his national team. Also on show were the two jerseys he wore in the Champions League final with Real Madrid, although he didn’t feature too often in that competition.

When the subject of former Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, James did not offer a comment, but really his “no comment” chuckle was more powerful than any statement would have been:

Suso reminded him of his former coach Zinedine Zidane, to which James responded only with a laugh.

But not all of James’ memories of Real Madrid were bad. He did have some massive success with Los Blancos, including some impressive personal statistics, which he was quick to point out:

Real Madrid was the club where I scored the most goals, 32 with Porto and 36 in Madrid. That isn’t easy, and with 42 assists, too.

Harry Potter and paisa make James a happy man

James then detailed his love for all things Harry Potter.

Since I was 10 years old, I have been a fan of Harry Potter and I always thought that if I had my own little cinema then I’d put pictures of the film up.

When the conversation turned to James’ culinary tastes, the Colombian star named his favorite dish and - according to the staff working at his house - often will help prepare meals.

A paisa platter is his favourite food and is one which he always chooses when he returns home. Can he cook though? ‘He helps with the barbecue!’ was the response from one of his employees in the house.

But...and there is always a but, James’ life is not all paisa and Harry Potter. According to James, he is sort of a shut-in during the season; choosing to focus on soccer, partly because of the attention he draws when leaving the house.

I haven’t been to a shopping center in seven years. It is nice to feel the affection but sometimes we would also like to be able to leave the house quietly and be with our girlfriend for a while.

The World Cup fallout for Colombia

Aside of not really being able to have a social life, another subject which disappoints James is Colombia’s exit from the World Cup:

When they are such important games, a lot of things go through your head but we played a good game and competed well and made it difficult. What happened, happened but I couldn’t stand after that injury so it was very hard for me to sit and watch. I also think the referee was quite bad, although we can’t use that as can excuse because we went out on penalties which was luck.

In addition, the 27-year old also refrained from commenting on whether or not he thought Colombia coach Jose Pekerman should remain the head man for the national team.

The official “Best of James” list

James then addressed several questions regarding his best individual performance, his best goal, and best title among other “best of” topics.

Finally, the interview moved on to quick fire questions and confessions. His best match? Against Uruguay in the World Cup in Brazil. That’s also where he scored his best goal. The best forward to play alongside? Radamel Falcao and Cristiano Ronaldo. The best title? There is no doubt that it was ‘those with Real Madrid’, where he won, among other things, two Champions League titles, a La Liga championship and a Club World Cup.

Status with Bayern Munich

When the conversation shifted to his time in Munich, James indicated his ability to learn German is a constant challenge, as he often has to rely on English or Spanish to communicate with teammates:

Every day, I understand a little less German, that’s f****d up (laughing).

Finally, the big question was asked, “Will he play for Bayern this season?”

So far, I’m still here and I’ve had a spectacular first season so I’m very happy there and I feel like the club and the fans love me very much.

Okay, well that was probably not exactly what Bayern fans would like to hear; as in it was not a resounding “Yes.” When it comes to James lately, nothing seems to be definitive and there is always seems to be a caveat involved.

On a better note, James also stated that he is healthy and recovered from the injury he sustained during the World Cup. James should join the squad in Florida this week for training, but will not play in the International Champions Cup match against Manchester City in Miami.

It is always refreshing to see an athlete open up like James did for this piece by The Suso’s Show. To his credit, James was open and seemingly honest with his responses.