Football: Real Madrid star eyes exit after frustrating season

Real Madrid's James Rodriguez celebrates after scoring with his teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. Photo / Getty

James Rodriguez is ready to leave Real Madrid this summer after growing increasingly disillusioned with life in at the Bernabeu.

It has been a difficult second season for the Colombian star and Spanish newspaper AS have lead with the headline: 'James looks for an exit.'

The downward spiral of events is in stark contrast from two years ago, when the midfielder arrived from Monaco for £60m after a series of impressive performances for his country at the 2014 World Cup - including his incredible volley against Uruguay which earned him the FIFA Puskas Award.

A fine first campaign with Los Blancos saw the play-maker hit the net 17 times in all competitions as he excelled under former manager Carlo Ancelotti.

However, the 24-year-old has since struggled to replicate that form and along with injuries has been restricted to just 19-top flight appearances under new boss and club legend Zinedine Zidane.

Rumours of a bust-up with the Frenchman were touted as reasons for his exile - which included an El Clasico snub and a mere 11 minutes of action in the Champions League quarter-final game against Wolfsburg.

With home-grown talent Jese Rodriguez and Lucas Vazuqez pushing Rodriguez further down the pecking order, the situation is far from ideal, something which the player's father Wilson Rodriguez bemoaned as result in the switch of management.

"Ancelotti and Zidane are two very different managers and the fact that he isn't playing at the moment doesn't mean anything, but it's obvious that change of manager was bad for him," he told Marca.

While Real president Florentino Perez has backed his signing to rediscover his confidence, the player is believed to already be eyeing a new team and with a host of clubs aware, he would not be short of options.

Premier League quartet Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United are among the sides keen on the signature of Rodriguez, while Juventus and Bayern Munich are also possible destinations.

Only a point behind Barcelona heading into the final day, Real travel to Deportivo, hoping their bitter-rivals slip up, while they also contest their second European cup final in two seasons against Atletico Madrid in a rematch from 2014 later this month.