If James Rodriguez is a Golden Boy, then he plays like one as well. We have all heard of a Golden Boy, or Golden Girl, who always did or said the right thing, and more so than that, always did the exceptional thing exceptionally well.
Looking through the honors of James’ on-field career, we see that same ability. He has been voted young player of the year in Argentina, player of the year in France, won the golden boot at the World Cup, and scored FIFA’s goal of the year.
It seemed like he could do no wrong, until recently. James’ form has fallen off, and some are blaming his rise to fame. If that is his struggle, he will overcome it. James Rodriguez’ history of performing on the field shows that he will adapt to his latest challenge off it.
Picking a highlight video that exemplifies a great James Rodriguez performance is a bit like picking between several golden eggs. The list just goes on and on: James Rodriguez vs Japan, James Rodriguez vs Uruguay, vs Granada, or more recently vs Real Betis. His class is evident in each game. It is as if he knows exactly how to balance creativity and directness, selfishness and selflessness. Maybe this simply describes a good player, but he is so much more than that.
James Rodriguez has shown that he can perform exceptionally in almost every circumstance. He was consistently brilliant as an underdog when he guided Colombia to a quarterfinal exit at the 2014 World Cup. He showed that the weight of expectation was no burden to him in his inaugural season with Real Madrid. Today, however, he is facing a challenge unlike any he has faced throughout his career: he is learning how to deal with fame.
A player’s ability to handle his personal life can have as great of an effect on their performance as their ability to deal with on-field pressure. James, as alluded to before, has had little trouble with the latter, no matter what flavor it comes in. But when it comes to his personal life, he has not always met it with the same confidence he portrays on the field.
In a great piece by FourFourTwo, we learn that James was incredibly shy as a child. He was always gifted on the field, but when it came to communicating in ways that didn’t involve a ball, he was handicapped. He had a stutter that made his speech halting and unemphatic. His coaches were so worried about his disposition, about his inability to show emotions, that they worked with psychologists to address it.
It sounds absurd, really, to think that a man who does this…
…was at one point uncomfortable with people. Look at him, he is so comfortable in his own skin that he basks in the love of his teammates and adoration of his fans. He looks like he was born to applause.
That comfort has recently, allegedly, given way to excess in the face of his new found fame. Just before Real Madrid fired Rafa Benitez, through the first few weeks of the reign of Zinedine Zidane, James was accused of losing himself. He allegedly was partying too hard. He was caught speeding and instigated a 200 kph police chase, all because he was late for practice.
A well-known Colombian journalist claimed “he’s lost all sense of perspective” and “follows Cristiano [Ronaldo].” This all took place, and arguably might still be taking place, a year and a half into his time at Madrid, a year and a half into being a galactico: one of the biggest stars in the planet practically by association alone.
His on-field performances did little to dispel talk that fame and stardom was getting to his head. Over 9 matches from the end of November to the middle of January — within the period during which Benitez fell out with Madrid and was replaced by Zidane — James registered no goals and only three assists, all of which came in a 10-2 blowout of Rayo Vallecano on December 20th.
Something was wrong with the Colombian. Something had done what being a relative unknown at the World Cup or the newest big name signing at Real Madrid could not: throw him off his game.
There is one other point in James’ career, as outlined by FourFourTwo, in which James struggled greatly. It came during his first professional stint outside of his native Colombia. He was 17 years old, and had transferred to Club Atlético Banfield in Argentina.
“I would try to speak to him for just two minutes every day, because long-distance calls were expensive,” said Maria de Pilar Rubio, James’ mother, recalling how she used to console a young James when during his first year at Banfield. “I just wanted to remind him to go to sleep early, to keep the house tidy, to arrive early to training sessions and to make him remember that God was blessing him.”
It is not hard to see how a young James could have thought that his blessings were few and far between. The shy boy with the stutter was having a terrible time adjusting to life away from home. It was cold in Argentina, frigid compared to Colombia. He was routinely called, and more likely dismissed as, “little Colombian.”
After an initial stint with the first team he was bumped down to the reserves, where his teammates resented him for having been on the first team at all. He was kicked for being too talented, and scolded for being too slow. His first coach was fired and a second hired, one who worked James even harder.
James Rodriguez after some hazing at Banfield in which his head was shaved. Photo: @FotoHistorica1 | Twitter
Slowly, James adjusted, and at the same time he also came out of his shell. His mother moved in with him. He eventually got over his stutter by reading books out loud. He shared his favorite music and dance moves with his teammates. He became the youngest foreigner to ever play in the Argentine top flight. He began dating the young lady that would become his wife.
He was scouted and signed by FC Porto during his second year at Banfield. His European dream was underway, a shocking departure, and a complete turn around from how things began at Banfield.
It is hard to say if there is any correlation or causation between James becoming comfortable in his own skin and James’ on-field success at Banfield, but it is easy to see how there could be.
At Banfield, James faced a challenge of character greater and unlike any he had faced prior. He was in a new country, on a new team, and no one around him really knew him. He had to earn the respect of his teammates in order to be successful on the pitch, all footballers do, and some of those teammates disliked him immediately. It is much harder to remain quiet and change someone’s opinion than to do so while socializing.
If he had remained the shy, closed off boy he was when he first arrived in Argentina, there is reason to believe he never would have become comfortable, and then successful, at Banfield.
Having your character challenged is something very different than having your skills challenged. And it seems that if we can gather anything from his success during the 2014 World Cup, his first season at Real Madrid, and his struggles at Banfield, it is that James deals with the latter much better than the former.
This would explain his troubles handling fame. Once again his character is being challenged, once again he is in a new world. Except that this new world isn’t cold and strange like it was at Banfield. This one, the one earned by his fame, is one that greets him with open arms everywhere he goes. It is always inviting him to parties, giving him gifts, and wants him to make an appearance here, and take a picture with some women there. The temptation must be immense.
James and Cristiano became friendly on the pitch very quickly. Photo: @esmitv | Twitter
Let’s not underestimate the fame that James has at his disposal. He is a Galactico, a label that grants it’s own status in it’s own right; and then he is James, the good-looking young man who scores brilliant goals and then dances the night away right there on the field. He has to learn how to resist the kind of acceptance he worked so hard to build as he came of age. It must seem incredibly backward, and it would be no surprise if he struggled at first.
The good news is that his current challenge mirrors another one he passed with flying colors, and that has already been mentioned repeatedly. At the 2014 World Cup, he had to perform at one end of a spectrum, as the underdog. Then at Real Madrid, he had to perform at the opposite end, as someone who was expected to be great. Succeeding at Brazil and initially at Madrid did require some character in the form of composure and confidence, but more so it required great skill.
Now, with handling fame, he has a challenge that is asking questions of his character and little else. It is the polar opposite of his struggle to overcome shyness at Banfield. He overcame his shyness after some time, to such an extent that he is as comfortable in his own skin as any star in the world. So too will he learn to handle his fame.
Because James Rodriguez is a professional footballer and a celebrity, it is worth mentioning something that everyone already knows: he’s not perfect. When a person reaches the level of success that James has, and especially when that level of success is tied to popularity, and especially when they are young, they are often seen as some sort of perfect example of a human, as a Golden Boy or Golden Girl.
It is then easy to overreact every time they falter, because under that preconception they never should. James Rodriguez is faltering right now, there can be no doubt about that, but if handling fame is what’s holding him back, he shouldn’t be dismissed.
That’s not to say doing so would matter to him. He’s already shown the whole world that he performs just fine when no one expects him to.
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