Monaco forward Dimitar Berbatov has said he knew former team mate James Rodriguez would end up at one of the world’s top clubs from the first time he saw him in training.
The ex-Tottenham and Manchester United forward joined the Ligue 1 side from Fulham in January initially on loan before making a permanent switch this summer.
And he told reporters that from day one he could see Colombian playmaker Rodriguez had something special about him. The 22-year-old signed for Los Blancos in July in an 80-million-euro deal.
Prior to his switch the to Santiago Bernabeu, Rodriguez had secured the Golden Boot at the World Cup, with six goals in five games for his country, including the goal of the tournament – a spectacular long range effort against Uruguay in the second round.
Berbatov told journalists: “From my first training here, if you understand football, you could see James Rodriguez is a special player. The way he passed the ball, the way he touched the ball. The way he moves on the pitch. You could see the way he was thinking.”
And he continued: “Personally, for me, it was clear that he was going to go to the biggest club. Manchester, Real Madrid, Barcelona, whatever.”
Pray he justify his 80m fee!!!