James Rodriguez Returns to Libertadores 14 Years Later
Colombian James Rodríguez returns to the Copa Libertadores after many years away from the South American competition.
The match between Argentinean side Talleres and Brazilian team Sao Paulo in the Libertadores this Thursday will be very special for Colombian midfielder James Rodríguez, who is returning to the main club tournament in the Americas after 14 years.
Don't miss the upcoming Libertadores match between Talleres and Sao Paulo on Thursday, April 4th, starting at 7:55 PM ET on beIN SPORTS.
After winning two Champions Leagues, two Club World Cups, and two UEFA Super Cups with Real Madrid, along with a Europa League title with Porto, besides numerous trophies in Spain, Germany, and Portugal, the Cúcuta
native returns to the Copa Libertadores. He previously competed in the tournament in 2010 as a player for Argentinean side Banfield, which reached the round of 16 at that time.
Recently, James stated in an interview with Globo Esporte that he was "very young" (18 years old) when he played in that Libertadores and that he now sees it as a "very difficult tournament with long trips, unlike the Champions League, with short trips."
The Colombian international arrives in Córdoba as the star player of Brazilian side Sao Paulo, three-time champions of the competition (1992, 1993, and 2005), and eager to confirm in South American football what he
achieved in his successful European journey.
However, his name has recently been involved in a scandal affecting the 'Tricolor', a club accused by a rival of allegedly fixing matches in the 2023 Brasileirao.
Despite this, the team coached by Thiago Carpini is fully focused on the continental competition after being eliminated from the title race in the Campeonato Paulista, where they fell in the quarterfinals weeks ago.
Meanwhile, Talleres will try to capitalize on their good form in the Argentinean Liga de la Liga, where they are among the leaders.
Walter Ribonetto's team is second in Zone A, with 22 points, tied with Barracas Central, behind group leader Argentinos Juniors (24), and ahead of River Plate and Vélez (21).
The blue and white team comes from defeating the latter 1-0, and although their coach chose to replace Rubén Botta and Gastón Benavídez due to physical problems during that match, he confirmed that the entire squad is
available to face the Brazilians.
This is their fourth participation in the Libertadores, after reaching the quarterfinals in 2022, their best performance.
Cordobeses and Paulistas have already faced each other in the competition, in the second round of the qualifying phase in 2019: Talleres caused an upset by winning the first leg (2-0), a result that sealed the tie,
as the return leg ended 0-0.
From that feat, goalkeeper Guido Herrera remains in the team.
