‘Football is stained by this’ – James Rodriguez furious as his team kicked out of Club World Cup for rule breach
REAL MADRID flop James Rodriguez lashed out at Fifa after his current club were kicked out of the Club World Cup.
Rodriguez, 33, now plays for Mexican outfit Leon, qualified for this summer’s competition and were placed in Group D with Chelsea, Flamengo and Esperance de Tunis.
According to The Mail, however, the Liga MX giants were removed from the Club World Cup due to a breach of Fifa’s regulations regarding multi-club ownership.
Leon and Mexican rivals Pachuca are both owned by Grupo Pachuca, and thus their participation was challenged.
Rodriguez‘s side will be replaced by Costa Rican outfit Alajuelense, while Pachuca will remain in the competition.
The Colombia international, though, is raging with that decision, which he described as a “grave injustice”.
The former Everton ace also stated that Leon’s replacements Alajuelence as well as football as a whole will be “stained”.
Rodriguez said: “I think it’s a grave injustice. We all believe that. We won on the pitch.
“The club and the players are hurt by this. Thinking about this, if we’re out, it’s not fair.
“The team that would replace us would be stained, football would be stained.
“So many fans have planned to travel to the tournament, how do you tell them that they can’t go? I have a lot of questions about all this. It’s odd.
“I think Fifa has to get their things together. Football is stained by this.”
Rodriguez joined Leon in January and one of the key motivations behind his move was to play in the Club World Cup.
But the playmaker, who is on a one-year contract, stated that he is “happy” with his current team and suggested he wishes to stay regardless.
Rodriguez added: “I’m happy to be here. Whether or not we play in the Club World Cup does not change the fact that I want to stay here.
“This is something new for me. I never qualified for a Club World Cup, and weeks before they tell you that you are out. I hope Fifa can do something.”
More criticism piles up
Leon share Rodriguez’s anger and addressed their elimination with a stern statement.
It read: “Club Leon expresses its disagreement with the decision made by FIFA, which could exclude us from the next Club World Cup.
“In recent months, we have presented each piece of evidence and documents confirming that Club Leon operates autonomously in all economic, administrative, and sporting aspects.
“Should Club Leon be prevented from participating in the 2025 Club World Cup with the same rights with which it earned a place on the pitch, we will pursue the matter to the fullest extent possible in the highest sporting courts.”
The restructured Club World Cup competition has attracted immense criticism from players, pundits and fans for several reasons.
One of them was the fact that it will take place this summer after a busy season and could lead to exhaustion for a raft of players.
The competition also came under fire when Inter Miami qualified despite not winning the MLS, with many claiming it was down to Fifa attempting to get Lionel Messi in the revamped tournament.
The world governing body’s president Gianni Infantino pointed to Miami winning the Supporters Shield, awarded to the American club who perform the best over the regular season, as the reason for their qualification.