Like any hotly anticipated transfer, the James Rodriguez-Monaco-Real Madrid saga of course now has yet another twist.
A new report from Goal.com now claims that Rodriguez has sealed an €88 million move to the Spanish capital, rivaling the massive fee spent on Liverpool's Luis Suarez by Barcelona.
Other reports as per ESPNFC, claim that it's actually €80 million, so obviously his fee will be somewhere in between those two figures.
Yesterday, reports from Spain were abuzz when the Colombian star was spotted in Madrid, fueling speculation that his move was pretty much a done deal.
But not surprisingly, his current employers, who are bankrolled by Russian businessman Dmitri Rybolovlev opted to dig in their heels over his transfer fee. Understandably, the newly cash rich side, who were featuring in Ligue 2 during the 2012-2013 season and finished 2nd in Ligue 1 this past season, were not so keen to just hand over one of their prized assets whom they paid €45 million for from Porto just a season ago.
Real Madrid had reportedly initially offered €75 million over the weekend but the Russian wanted €85 million, as per reports from France's L'Equipe, meaning that the two sides were €10 million apart on their valuations regarding the player.
Frustration: Monaco were keen on making things difficult for their prized asset to depart for Spain
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L'Equipe also claims that everything is all set for the 2014 World Cup top scorer to make his move to the Spanish capital, with a villa already set up for him and his family, but Real Madrid were hoping to include a player so as to bring down the asking price.
Unfortunately, according to the French publication, none of the rumored players, including Angel Di Maria, Diego Lopez, Pepe, or Sami Khedira had any interest in plying their trades in Monaco.
Well, if someone really wants something, or in this case, someone, they will pay whatever they have to get their man. And if this report is to be believed, they have done just that to bring him on board.
