Rodriguez will be given until last moment to prove fitness
Colombia star James Rodriguez will be given until the last possible moment to prove he is fit to face England tonight.
Rodriguez suffered a calf injury during Los Cafeteros’ final group game against Senegal and has yet to return to full training ahead of the last-16 clash in Moscow.
The 26-year-old won the Golden Boot at the 2014 tournament, but as his team-mates made their final preparations for the knockout clash with the Three Lions, he was left on the sidelines going through a light stretching routine and talking to medical staff.
For a player of lesser stature or importance to the side, that might have been enough to rule him out of action. For Rodriguez, it merely lessened the odds.
“We have had good news after his medical tests,” said manager Jose Pekerman at his pre-match press conference on Monday afternoon.
“After his MRI we know he doesn’t have a serious injury. We still have one and a half days to see how he feels and, as always, we hope he will be able to play for the following games.”
Pressed for further details, the Argentinian coach said only: “You will know my team one hour before kick-off.”
Should the Real Madrid forward be restricted to bench duties, Sevilla’s Luis Muriel is his likely replacement, but the burden of responsibility is likely to lay on Radamel Falcao.
Falcao is not just Colombia’s record scorer but a player with a prolific CV at both Atletico Madrid and Monaco. He had a largely unremarkable spell in English football during loan spells with Manchester United and Chelsea.