Real Madrid could use James Rodriguez to land Neymar from PSG

According to an absolute doozy of a report by Sport Bild, Real Madrid could use James Rodriguez to land Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain. The Colombian, who is still on loan at Bayern Munich at the moment, is expected to return to the Spanish capital this summer, having failed to break into the squad. The Bavarians most likely won’t make his move permanent.

The report doesn’t make much sense beyond the basics. We know that Real are looking for a new superstar to replace Cristiano Ronaldo, and Zinedine Zidane will be given charge of a full squad overhaul this summer. James is reportedly not in the manager’s plans for the future, making him surplus to requirements at Real. Florentino Perez has been a known admirer of Neymar for some time now, and using the Colombian to land him could work out well for both parties.

The question is — why would PSG agree to such a swap? They have Neymar locked down and under a contract, and despite all of his shenanigans off the pitch, he is still one of the best players in the world and they would be stupid to let him go. PSG do need midfielders — as the Sport Bild report correctly points out — but selling Neymar to get James would likely be a step back for them.

The only way this would make sense if there was some financial fair play issues going on in Paris, or if Thomas Tuchel and Neymar’s relationship has gone sour — neither of which are impossible, just unlikely.

This is the first time James has been linked to a club outside of Arsenal and Juventus (and we’re not even sure why he was linked with Arsenal in the first place). The Colombian definitely has his suitors — but this particular rumor seems way too far-fetched to come true.