Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez will be placed on a specially-designed training regime in order to boost his fitness amid talk of a row with Zinedine Zidane.
AS notes James and the Coach had a disagreement during the win over Sporting when the Colombia international stopped warming up and had to be told by Zizou to start again.
There’s also unhappiness that James is at 13% body fat, while average for a player is 8%, part of a feeling he is not taking his career seriously enough.
Regular breaks in Dubai and a high-speed police chase have added to that perception, the report continues.
James fell out with Zidane’s predecessor Rafa Benitez and AS suggests there’s a feeling in the player’s camp that the discord is a result of his request for a better contract.
But James didn’t have a full pre-season as he was playing for his country at the Copa America, joining his Madrid teammates part-way through a tour of China.
Zidane is said to hope to get James back to his physical best and focus his mind as well, with the former Porto and Monaco midfielder to be placed on a specific training plan formulated by Bernardo Requena, the physical trainer, and Hamidou Msaide, who oversees recovery.
