James Rodriguez not interested in move to ‘physical’ Premier League

Posted Friday, July 04, 2014 by theguardian.com

• 22-year-old Colombia forward open to move to La Liga
• Rodríguez focused on World Cup quarter-final against Brazil

The Colombia forward James Rodríguez admits he would be keen on a move to La Liga but says he is not interested in the Premier League as it is too physical for him.

The 22-year-old has been widely lauded as one of the players of the World Cup and his star performances have thrust his national team into a first ever quarter-final against Brazil on Friday.

Rodríguez joined Monaco from Porto for £38.5m last summer and while it is unlikely his club would countenance selling him, he admits he would relish a move to Spain one day.

"I’ve said in the past that I’d like to play in Spain one day, because it is a league that is good technically, and where you get a lot of touches on the ball, which is my style," he said. "The Premier League is maybe a bit physical at this stage. But I am a Monaco player and I’m not thinking about anything like that at the moment. I am now just concentrating on Brazil, which is going to be a wonderful experience for us."

Colombia have won all their games en route to Friday’s last-eight encounter against the hosts and Rodríguez insists his side have the belief they can go all the way in the tournament.

"We don’t concede too many goals, and we have one of the best groups of players the country has had over the last decade," he added. "We are united, and our coach is very clever and knows how to get the best out of us, and outwit opponents. We have a great goalkeeper and we can score lots of goals. There is no reason why we can’t have a go at winning it."

"We have a nice blend of youth and experience. Our coach has got us all playing and fighting for each other, and for Colombia. We play the Colombian way and keep the ball. That’s something I’ve been taught since I was very young. But we are a solid unit defensively, and then there are players like myself who will try something a bit different – try to beat a man and change it up. We can play a number of different ways and can hit people with quick moves – that’s hard to defend against."