#Toni Kroos news

[leonsliga]

toni.kr8s:

Leute, kurz und schmerzlos: Ich werde ab März wieder für Deutschland spielen. Warum? Weil ich vom Bundestrainer gefragt wurde, Bock drauf habe und sicher bin, dass mit der Mannschaft bei der EM viel mehr möglich ist, als die meisten gerade glauben!

I’ll keep this short and sweet, everyone: I will play for Germany again in March. Why? Because I was asked by the coach, I'm in the mood, and I'm sure that with the national team at the Euros, much more is possible than most believe right now!

Some messages of support from current and former teammates:

[iniyaas]

oh found the kind of shit Kiyora-Kaiser duo pulled in his Magnus goal lmao

(tho fictional, kiyora made the ball stop midgame, so can we give kiyora proper credit for that wonderful assist please??)

[commandernarumi]

my starboy midfielder i will always wait for you ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹 ❤️‍🩹

[f1tfballetc]

JUST IN: Toni Kroos will retire from professional football after the Euro 2024.

The German has confirmed his retirement via Instagram where he especially mentioned, "I am happy and proud, that in my mind I found the right timing for my decision and that I could choose it by my own. My ambition was always to finish my career at the peak of my performance level."

The football world will miss you, Toni! 🥺❤️

[katropolis]

TONI KROOS IS RETURNING TO THE GERMAN NATIONAL TEAM

[dumbseee]

bragging.

when jude is dating his celebrity crush and he can’t stop bragging about it.

jude bellingham x famous!reader.

_

"nah but look at her, isn’t she so beautiful?" he rhetorically asked vini, who was sitting next to him. the brazilian looked at him, stunned, before looking at aurelien who was laughing his ass off with camavinga at his side. "is this guy for real?" vini was so tired of his friend shoving his phone down his nose to show him your latest achievement. jude looked up from his phone, pouting. "what? am i not allowed to brag about my amazing girlfriend?" he sank deeper into his seat and smiled softly when he saw your notification, you had just posted a new story.

"the thing is, you always do this. 'guys! look at y/n’s new post, look at her new commercial, look at her new movie poster.'" camavinga mimicked jude, resulting in the british to throw a pillow at him. "i don’t speak like that!" he said, frowning. "let the boy be in love, guys." tony kroos entered the hotel room the four friends were staying in. "if y/n l/n was my girlfriend i’d act the same way." he added, smiling at jude. "right? she’s so perfect." he mumbled to himself, still smiling at his phone like a fool. "i think we should get him checked into a hospital asap." vini told aurelien.

and it was true, jude was your biggest fan out of them all. he was already a fan before even meeting you, to him you were always amazing and so talented. the story of how you met was actually funny but embarrassing if you asked jude. during one of his drunken nights with his boys, jude, who was absolutely wasted, was scrolling through your instagram feed, feeling sad that he couldn’t be by your side and be your boyfriend. he was convinced you’d never be attracted to him. so he dmed you, completely drunk but he didn’t care, the message itself said: 'why are you so beautifl? pls be my gf'. when he woke up in the morning, a headache killing him, he almost had a stroke when he saw that he received a dm from you. well, he dmed you first and you answered but jude didn’t know it yet. imagine the horror on his face when he read his message and when he read yours.

'then let’s fix that, pretty boy ;)'

[rammingthestein]

"The pieces have started to come together for a great documentary. Today, we spent time at Rammstein drummer Christoph Schneider’s place. He was chatting to our protagonist Stefan Kretzschmar about growing up in the DDR and how a whole new world of opportunities arose as the Berlin Wall came down.

With this film, we are hoping to reach audiences far beyond the handball community, and with Toni Kroos, Dirk Nowitzki, and Christoph Schneider now in the can, things are looking promising. Stay tuned for the premiere in January."| From the producer Nicklas Vinde Mathiassen's Facebook page.

[leonsliga]

At the request of the wonderful @realmadrider, here’s some of my comfort footy vids 😁 happy watching!

All things DFB and Bundesliga:

Bayern Summer Games 2022 (especially the Guess the Song challenge)

Agility Challenge • Kimmich vs. Goretzka (AKA Kimetzka being an old married couple for nearly 7 minutes)

Wer kennt mehr? Leon Goretzka & Joshua Kimmich

Stadt, Land, Fußball - Thomas Müller and Leon Goretzka

Thomats Challenge: Bundesliga Edition

The big FC Bayern quiz with Manuel Neuer and Sven Ulreich

Google Autocomplete Challenge with Serge Gnabry and Leon Goretzka

Servus, Leon Goretzka!

Leon Goretzka vs. Julian Brandt: Buzzwire Challenge

Bundesliga Stars Try to Draw Their Team Logos - Witsel, Goretzka, and Co.

Mats Hummels vs. Thomas Müller: Me or Him Challenge

Pro vs. Pro:Direct with Thomas Müller

Read My Lips: 🇩🇪 vs. 🇫🇷

Close-Up with Leon Goretzka

60 Seconds Challenge: 🇩🇪🆚🇫🇷

Neuer, Müller, and Lahm making fun of Kramer’s memory loss during the 2014 World Cup final

One gotta go with Marco Reus and Julian Brandt

Manuel Neuer and Bastian Schweinsteiger dancing on the beach

Don’t get distracted! With Julian Brandt and Marco Reus

Müller & Co. Decorating the Christmas Tree

Hummels & Brandt: Which of You…

FC Bayern Teammate Insights

Neuer, Martínez, and Hernández Carpool Q&A

EURO Taxi with Thomas Müller and Mats Hummels

Manuel Neuer vs. Thomas Müller

New Season, New Berni ft. Müller, Neuer, Sané, and Davies

So feiern die Bayern das Triple

Neuer, Piszczek & Co. Try to Draw - Who is the Best Artist

Take it easy | BVB-Challenge with Marco Reus and Julian Brandt

Kimmich vs. Gnabry | Copy the Penalty Challenge

Chunkz vs. Neuer | YouTuber vs. Pro Keeper Penalty Shoot Out Challenge

Manuel Neuer im Interview

Who am I? BVB-Challenge with Mats Hummels and Marcel Schmelzer

Manu lifting up a jar of Nutella like it’s Simba

DFB Nutella Commercial

Will Grigg’s on fire! Is Mats Hummels terrified?

Bayern Summer Games 2021

Thomats Christmas Challenge

Serge Gnabry: Unlocked feat. Yung Filly

Who knows more? Marco Reus vs. Mario Götze - 2018 edition

Who knows more? Marco Reus vs. Mario Götze - 2019 revenge

Netradio Newcomer with Marco Reus and Julian Brandt

Best of Radio Müller

Thomats dieses Mal olympisch - eng subs

Don’t get distracted! With Mats Hummels and Marcel Schmelzer

Cow-Milking and Welly-Throwing | Team-Building Fun at FC Bayern

Shell Game w/ Manuel Neuer

Pantomime w/ Manuel Neuer

Drawing w/ Manuel Neuer

Marco Reus vs. Mats Hummels - Buzz Wire Challenge

Manuel Neuer reveals the results of his doping test (spoiler alert: it was urine)

Thomats Basketball Challenge

Thomas Müller “JAAA” compilation

A Spanish Lesson for Neuer with Thiago - Repeat after Me Challenge

Fußball-Dart: Goretzka gegen Burgstaller

You Have to Answer - Marco Reus

Bayern Team Photo Vlog

Who knows more 2.0: Brandt vs. Hummels

Thomats Tangram Challenge

FC Bayern wish you a Merry Christmas

Mario Götze’s Most Famous Picture

Mats Hummels pranks Gio Reyna

DFB Water Polo Teambuilding

Erling Haaland being a funny guy for 3 minutes straight

Bromance: Manuel Neuer & Leon Goretzka

Manuel Neuer, Per Mertesacke, & Arne Friedrich - Sky ad

Neustädter vs. Reus

Literally anything else:

50 most shocking moments of the 2010 World Cup

Jose Mourinho explains football to a baffled Ted Lasso

Timo Werner being the funniest German for 2 minutes (because he’s an adorable bean)

Lingard and Rashford | Roommates

Ney…freezin innit

Wingmen: Bruno Fernandes and Jesse Lingard

Manchester United x Stone Roses

I am Jose Mourinho 😎

Sergio Ramos drops the Supercopa under the bus

Marcelo, Bale, Ramos, & Co. joking around on a plane because why not

Lies | Toni Kroos & David Alaba

Kroos & Modrić | Teammates

Toni Kroos’s fantastic interview after RMA beat Liverpool in the UCL final

Luka Modrić taunting Gerard Piqué like the girlboss he is

Real Madrid x NFL with a heavy dose of Modramos

Roy Keane’s angriest moments discussing Manchester United - very validating as a United fan in the modern era tbh 😭

THE Kunessi stream - eng subs (55 minutes in all its glory)

When Kun met Leo

Kun calling Leo on stream

Sergio Agüero interviews Lionel Messi

Honestly every episode of the Champions

[footoballrps]

ayo ! new to the glorious game of football, seriker caught my eye and here i am now, obsessed and learning !

this is a discord rp plot call for football rpf and football oc x oc rps !

   * currently only writing m x m ships.

20+ long-term writing partners only ! open to plotting, texts, headcanons, nsfw. mutual respect and communication of limits and triggers important.

some of the ships i am currently familiar with and looking to write are — seriker (sergio ramos · iker casillas), modramos / ramodric (sergio ramos · luka modric), modkroos (luka modric · toni kroos) · · · and bellingavi (jude bellingham · pablo gavi), pedrigavi (pedri gonzalez · pablo gavi), pedribell (pedri gonzalez · jude bellingham) · · · and jamieroy / kentartt ( roy kent · jamie tartt), tedependent (ted lasso · trent crimm) and more of the football ships you'll introduce me to !

like this post or message me and we can get this going ! it's already so rare to find such rps, so i am looking forward to this quite the bit. hope to hear from y'all soon !

[realmadridfamily]

My family? Jess is very supportive. Leon didn't like the decision. Ami despite being a big Madridista is very happy (laughs). She wants us to ride horses together, I always said it’s dangerous but now I need to come up with a new excuse.”

Toni Kroos :)

[thommi-tomate]

Interview with Aleks

By: Sky

Aleksandar, you celebrated your national team debut for Germany in the 0-0 draw against Ukraine. How did it feel to wear the DFB jersey?

Outstanding! Also for my family, who were in the stadium with me. The moment I was substituted was really nice. I've always dreamed of it - and now it's finally happened

You could have celebrated your DFB debut back in March, but had to cancel due to tonsillitis. How bitter was that for you?

That was very bitter. I might have to have my tonsils out because I've had tonsillitis two or three times now and it sets me back physically every time. I always have to take antibiotics, rest and then rebuild again - that's really annoying.

When would be the best time for an operation? After the European Championship is before the new season with FC Bayern.

I will probably have to sacrifice my vacation for it. That's more important now. I don't want to get sick again and miss two or three weeks. I'm concentrating on the European Championships for now. I hope to be in the final squad.

Who is your most important contact here in Herzogenaurach?

Thomas Müller. A legend and a super cool guy who always has an open ear for me, coaches me and gives me tips. It's really nice for me that he's there too and coaches me a bit

We've heard that Thomas Müller is particularly good at Mario Kart. Is he really unbeatable there?

I don't play Mario Kart myself, but let's put it this way: he's good at it. (laughs)

What is striking about the pictures from the DFB training camp is that Müller can always be seen with his drink (RDY). Even in the photo with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, he has placed it in a clearly visible position. Have you ever tried it?

Yes, it's good advertising! The drink is probably very healthy, has lots of vitamins and proteins. That's not bad at all. It also has a lot of pox in it here in Herzogenaurach, which has to be stored in the fridge. But I think it's good. (laughs)

Like Müller, you are a Bayern native. Many fans would like you to have the same kind of career with the record champions. Can you imagine that?

Yes, definitely. I'm a big Bayern fan.

How important is Thomas Tuchel to you?

I am very grateful for everything he and his coaching team have done for me. They gave me the chance to show myself. I won't forget that.

Has Tuchel's successor Vincent Kompany called you yet?

Not yet. But I'm looking forward to what's to come. We have to win titles again, that's for sure. We can't have another title-less season.

Did the Leverkusen DFB colleagues give you and the other Bayern stars a few cheeky title slogans?

No, not at all so far. They're all really good guys and you get on well with them. We want to attack again next season and work well as a team. That's the most important thing.

Which youth coach at Bayern are you particularly grateful to?

Danny Galm, my old U19 coach. He relied on me from the very first moment and supported me. I'm very grateful to him for that. I'm still in regular contact with him today.

Is it true that you were on the verge of leaving the Bayern campus several times as a teenager?

No. I never wanted to switch, even though I had difficult times, especially in the U15s. Back then, I was the smallest member of the team - a top football player, but physically weak. I often sat on the bench. But I always wanted to make it at Bayern and not go anywhere else. My motto: give everything, fight, work hard and then everything will turn out the way it has to

Have you always wanted to play in midfield?

I played as a striker on the small pitch. I always scored a lot of goals, I was a goal scorer (laughs). After switching to the big pitch, I was then in midfield and didn't want to leave that position. That's where I feel best.

What role models did you have?

Definitely Toni Kroos. I love the way he plays. But also Bastian Schweinsteiger. In terms of his mentality, but also the way he plays.

How crazy does it feel for you to now be playing with one of your idols in the national team?

That's really amazing. Also that I can now be here with the national team, play with the FC Bayern professionals and gain experience like I did in the Champions League semi-final against Real at the Bernabeu. I'm living my dream and I'm very grateful for everything.

In November 2023, you were still playing for the Bayern amateurs in the Regionalliga Bayern. Do you sometimes still pinch yourself at how quickly it all happened?

I enjoy it and don't mind if it continues in the same way (laughs).

How do you prepare for a game?

I don't have a specific ritual. I always listen to music before the game. But it's also different. I listen to everything. I generally try to relax and just enjoy myself. Being nervous or scared - that doesn't help at all.

If you look at your development so far: Where do you still need to improve?

I definitely want to become more athletic, build up a few more muscles - and improve my play against the ball!

[madridista-pura]

Breaking news Toni Kroos will retire at the end of the season!!!😭😭😭💔💔💔

[nightflower-stuff]

😎 Miko's relationships part 4😁

The Friendships/Besties/Closest Duo or Trio relationship, even more 🥺💕

1st slide:

• Nur Batrisyia (Sahara) & Miko Chen: She really likes him a lot because of her favorite player. If she's the big fan of Miko. He gave the rose of Sahara 🛐💘💗

Last slide:

• Toni Kroos & Miko Chen: Miko likes Toni Kroos a bit. They're both closest rivals each other 😁❣️✨

Read more:

If you were Nakama fan from Supa Strikas. I draw them for you, go to the next slide⏭️♥️🤩. If you were new, DM me, so that I can draw them. It will be surprised 😯🙈

Hope you like them 🖤🥺💕🛐

For @sahara-solaris-solace & @/m4y.ar (Instagram)

OC/Persona/Sona:

Nur Batrisyia (Sahara) (@sahara-solaris-solace)

[diemannschaftblr]

@/iMiaSanMia: Julian Nagelsmann: "Four important players have retired, all of whom have a great history with the DFB and played a key role at the Euros. We gave them the space they needed to think. You could also tell from the statements that they had thought about what was right. But I had very good discussions with them. First with Thomas, then with Manuel and Ilkay. It was not easy for the players. It was very transparent and emotional. I accept and understand the decision. But the door is never closed. If the three show outstanding performances at their clubs, they can always come back"

Nagelsmann confirms

- Captain: Joshua Kimmich

- Vice captain: Antonio Rüdiger

- 3rd captain: Kai Havertz

Nagelsmann: The new captains are Joshua Kimmich at number one, Antonio Rüdiger and Kai Havertz as vice captains. I think we have a good mix when it comes to this role. I think we've chosen well. They are eager to take on their roles

The team council consists of Joshua Kimmich, Jonathan Tah, Pascal Groß, Niclas Füllkrug and Marc-André ter Stegen: We have deliberately decided to include one of the three captains in the team council - we have nominated four other players to the team council - says Nagelsmann

On the goalkeepers: Marc-André (ter Stegen) is the new number one. He has been captain in Barcelona for several years and is the clear number one there. He's the same with us. I don't want to artificially heat up the competition behind him. Oliver Baumann played very well last season and also made a good impression during the European Championship. Alexander Nübel also performed well in Stuttgart last year. The battle behind him is open, including with Kevin Trapp and Bernd Leno. The important thing is that the number one is decided.

on the distribution of roles: We haven't made many changes compared to the Euros. There are still roles, but it is no longer assigned to one player. There will be a role where a player plays a certain position for one game and other players are planned as substitutes. Then there will also be a role where someone is not used at all in a game. But of course we want to have a core team and not experiment too much. Everyone knows that there are no longer extremely predefined roles, but that the whole thing is more open. That helped us during the Euros and must stay that way. The profile of the role will remain the same, even though the players will alternate.

on the plan for the next two games: We will consolidate the things we did at the Euros rather than try out a lot of new things. Also because many players are a bit overwhelmed in the first few weeks at their clubs. We want to be a bit more variable in the way we build up the game. But we don't want to complicate things. What we want to improve on is the faster, more straightforward game going forward after winning the ball back. That's something we didn't do so well. We also want to improve on set pieces. These will be important points.

on why he only called up one new player (Stiller) and whether Stiller is Kroos' successor: Toni Kroos' successor is a big job to do. I don't want to burden him with that at the beginning. There are currently few assessments from the current season because not much has been played yet. That's why the Euros squad is largely staying together. There may be changes in October if a few others players are in good form. Angelo did very well in Stuttgart. He was very close to the national team last year. That's why he deserves to show what he can do.

on Kimmich's position: He is initially planned to play right-back. But that can change. Generally speaking, he will stay right back because he did very well during the Euros and we can use him there. That's the current plan.

on Paul Wanner: I know him well from his time at FC Bayern. He has developed well. He is doing very well. A player with great potential. He is planned for the future at the DFB. When will he join the senior national team? That's partly up to him. I told him at Bayern what I wanted from him. Frank [Schmidt] is doing a world-class job with these players in Heidenheim. Paul will do very well. He may then receive another call from me.

[ikram1909]

https://www.tumblr.com/ikram1909/763176025784041472/httpswwwtumblrcomikram1909763157536885080064

Banning fascist fans is what they’re supposed to do, that’s nothing extraordinary or an act of revolutionary activism. Atléti fans are shitty, there’s no denying that, but let’s not act like modern-day Real Madrid are now angels who’ve done no wrong and don’t deserve to insulted.

Here’s a list I made of Real Madrid players I don’t like and why I don’t like them.

Real Madrid players who are scum:

Thibaut Courtois:

https://tribuna.com/amp/en/news/realmadrid-2023-11-30-they-are-against-all-who-dont-look-like-them-courtois-wife-stands-against-hamas-she-serve/

https://dearborn.org/preview/the-real-madrid-goalkeeper-and-his-wife-donated-about-50-thousand-dollars-to-israel-41499#

He’s married to a Zionist and is a Zionist.

Dani Carvajal:

https://amp.sport.es/es/noticias/seleccion/vinculan-carvajal-vox-91758565

https://www.elplural.com/sociedad/vinculos-carvajal-vox_316559102_amp

He’s a fucking Vox supporter.

Vinicius Jr:

https://tribuna.com/amp/en/news/realmadrid-2023-07-16-vinicius-jr-reacts-to-benjamin-mendy-found-not-guilty-of-rape-receives-criticism-from-som/

Disgusting rape apologist.

Toni Kroos:

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/37560061/toni-kroos-rejects-mesut-ozil-racism-claims-calls-retirement-reasons-nonsense

Like the title of the article says, Kroos rejected Mesut Özil’s racism claims. Which played a heavy part in why Özil’s retired from international football. I don’t even like Mesut Özil, but what does someone like Toni Kroos(i.e. ethnically German) benefit from dismissing alleged racism against someone like Mesut Özil(i.e. not ethnically German)?

Luka Modric:

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/37499647/luka-modric-potential-world-cup-winner-yet-many-croatia-hate-him

https://apnews.com/article/modric-croatia-real-madrid-lovren-0ddbffee249664ea18b17a27f42de0ab#:~:text=ZAGREB%2C%20Croatia%20(AP)%20—,tax%20fraud%20in%20a%20multi%2D

https://dohanews.co/backlash-after-video-surfaces-showing-croatian-players-celebrating-world-cup-with-neo-fascist-song/

https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/07/31/in-croatia-nazi-sympathizers-are-welcome-to-join-the-party-thompson-ustashe-fascism/

https://www.imago-images.com/offers/377242/Archive/Sports/Marko-Perkovic-and-Luka-Modric-arm-in-arm-at-the-celebrations-after-the-2018-World-Cup-archive-pictures-?db=sport

Luka Modric isn’t the perfect little angel everyone thinks he is.

Dani Ceballos:

https://amp.marca.com/en/football/spanish-football/2017/06/30/5956303d268e3ecd3f8b45d2.html

In addition to trying to ruin Gavi’s reputation, Dani Ceballos is also an all-round douchebag.

Never said it was revolutionary, I simply said they did what they can do. But yeah anon saying they got rid of their fascists was crazy when even the players are mostly scumbags

[armchairfootballer]

It’s been a rollercoaster 10 years since James Rodríguez wowed the world

It's been 10 years since James Rodríguez scored *that* goal. Yes, that one. You remember it well, surely.

The setting: Brazil's historic Maracanã stadium. In the 28th minute of their Round of 16 contest against Uruguay, Colombia's Abel Aguilar lobbed a header to James, who played it off his chest and volley-kicked it into the top of his opponents' net, near the corner, well beyond a diving Fernando Muslera. In a post-match summary of the goal, the poetic British commentator Peter Drury declared, "First touch, sumptuous. Second touch, magical. That's not a left foot. That is a wand." Uruguayan defender José María Giménez could do nothing more than stand with his hands on his hips, staring at the net in disbelief.

"My word, this boy's a star!" Drury proclaimed in the moment. James did not disappoint. He added another goal that game, taking his tally to five in the tournament after just four games. He'd add another in a quarterfinal loss to Brazil. Though Colombia would bow out at that point, James would go on to win the Golden Boot as the tournament's top scorer and, later, the Puskas Award for the year's most beautiful goal.

But it hasn't been a bed of roses for James in the ten years since Rio. Today, on his 33rd birthday, we take a look at the rise, fall, and revival of the Colombian midfielder.

The rising star

James had been building a strong career for himself in advance of the 2014 World Cup with productive seasons at Porto (32 goals in 107 appearances; 6 trophies) followed by a high-profile move to Monaco — a 5-year contract with a €45 million transfer fee. But in a post-World Cup interview, James said the magic words: that it would be his "life's dream" to play for Real Madrid. Ten days later, and with 4 years still left on his contract, James had signed with Carlo Ancelotti's band of superstars, a roster that included the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Toni Kroos, Kareem Benzema, and Sergio Ramos to name just a few. (Casillas, Pepe, Bale, Marcelo, Navas to name just a few more.)

Things started well at Madrid. Even amidst a team rich in talent, and despite being out for two months with injury, James contributed 17 goals in his first season. But later injuries and diminishing returns in successive seasons meant that James could no longer keep a regular place on the squad. New Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane also didn't seem to favor James' playing style, leading the Colombian to request a loan to Bayern Munich, where we would be reunited with Ancelotti.

Internationally, James was still making waves. At 25, he was named Colombia team captain for the 2016 Copa América, leading them to third place, losing only to eventual winners, Chile.

Fading away

Injuries plagued James for quite some time, keeping him from action for both club and country. After such a dazzling display in 2014, James sat on the bench at the 2018 World Cup and watched as his team went out to England in penalties in the Round of 16.

Despite scoring some key goals to help Bayern Munich win two league titles and a Pokal, James had netted only 15 goals in his 67 appearances with the club, and the owners opted not to pick up the option to purchase him. With no home in Munich or Madrid, he moved to Merseyside for a short stint with Everton (again, reuniting him with Ancelotti).

But failing to impress in England, and with no other clubs willing to take him on, James found himself playing for Qatar's Al Rayyan and didn't contribute much to their mediocre season. The Qatari team let him go just one game into his second season. He moved to Greece where he again lasted only one season after poor results with Olympiacos.

And James wouldn't get to return to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup as Colombia failed to qualify, finishing three points behind Ecuador for the last guaranteed spot. How did the World Cup star fade so fast for James?

Fast forward to summer 2023: James once again finds himself in South America. He now plays for São Paolo in Brazil, 13 years after he had left Argentina's Banfield, where he began built the reputation that catapulted him to European football. A name that had once dominated discussions among pundits — that had been proclaimed as "the next great thing" — had now faded into near oblivion. People weren't talking about James Rodríguez anymore.

Renaissance

After their failure to qualify for the 2022 World Cup, James expressed uncertainty as to whether he would ever again play for his country. That may have lit a fire under the team and perhaps even under him. Something started to happen...

Colombia started to pile up the wins, or at least had avoided losing. They had racked up victories against Mexico, Germany, and Brazil, among other countries. And before you knew it, they entered Copa América 2024 on a 23-game unbeaten run.

Enter James.

The attacking midfield has been a stalwart for Colombia all tournament and has been one of the keys to their success. In Colombia's five games so far, he has netted one goal and contributed six assists, surpassing Messi's tournament assist record. He's been man of the match for four of Colombia's five games of the tournament so far.

And when Colombia face off against Messi's Argentina in Sunday's final, James will need to play a pivotal role. Will his remarkable revival culminate in extending Colombia's historic unbeaten run and winning their first Copa América since 2001?

In addition to reinvigorating this Colombia team and resurrecting his career, James may also be accomplishing something even more outlandish — he may have some neutrals paying closer attention to him and Colombia than to Messi and Argentina. Colombia has arguably been the Copa's best team. Argentina has yet to come up against substantial competition and have had two victories over Canada.

Meanwhile, Colombia have had already had to battle both Brazil and Uruguay, defeating the latter while down a player for an entire half. The talented superstars of La Albiceleste, the world's #1 ranked team for the last 18 months now, can always dazzle and can outplay any team on their best day. But we've yet to see their best at this tournament, and it's feasible Colombia's passionate, fiery play could be a game-changer.

The bookies may have already made their prediction, but Sunday's eventual outcome is anything but clear. What is clear is that James Rodríguez will have a key role to play in whatever the result.

He's hoping it's a role for the better.