Multiple reports are suggesting that Bayern Munich is on the verge of securing a permanent move for James Rodriguez. His current loan deal is set to expire at the end of this season, but kicker is reporting that personal terms have already been agreed upon by James, his agent Jorge Mendes, and Bayern’s front office. As has been the case for a while now, Bayern’s plan has been to activate a permanent sale before the two-year loan ends next summer. That would at least temporarily eliminate the possibility of a return to Real Madrid, who would be more than happy to have him back, especially now that Cristiano Ronaldo is gone.

The estimated fee that would seal James’s permanent move from Madrid to Bayern is approximately €42m, which has been understood to be the case for some time now. Some speculation did arise regarding James’s future in Munich, as the Colombian has only started one of five Bundesliga matches under Niko Kovac, and the Champions League tie against Benfica. There were suggestions that he was growing increasingly unhappy with the substitute role, but with the injuries to both Corentin Tolisso and Kingsley Coman, James shouldn’t be too worried about not seeing enough minutes, especially after he was returning from an injury problem himself during the first couple of weeks of the season.

The potential Real Madrid roadblock

The meeting that is supposed to take place this week between Mendes, James, and Bayern’s front office was initially setup to hash out some of the final details for a permanent move, but it could prove to be more than that. Mendes will likely inform Bayern’s board that James does not want to commit to a deal before the summer of 2019 because he’ll want to assess the option of potentially returning to Madrid under new manager Julen Lopetegui. Per MARCA, the Spaniard has already been in contact with James to let him know he always has a place in Madrid’s squad and wouldn’t have to worry about not getting enough minutes.

A lot can happen between now and next summer, but Bayern is prepared to do everything in their power to convince James to agree on a permanent move without pressuring him too much.

It is in the club’s best interest to walk a fine line between convincing him to stay, but also giving him enough space to make the decision without forcing his hand. At the end of the day, activating the “buy” option on James would at least allow Bayern to sell the Colombian for a big profit should he decide that a future in Bavaria is no longer in his plans.