Juventus are looking to sign Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez for next seasons Champions League campaign.

The silly season is upon us! Rejoice! We have five whole months of nonsense rumours to contend with while the Italian and British papers go into meltdown, linking us with every player from Andre Gomes to Edinson Cavani!

….I digress. Today’s transfer nugget comes from the Corriere dello Sport who claim that Juve want young Rodriguez to help them make the difference in the Champions League, giving them the extra push they need.

If you believe whats being written in the press, James is unhappy at life in Madrid due to his lack of playing time, while Real are unimpressed by his ‘wild’ ways.

Speaking to British tabloid rag, ‘The Sun’, Spanish football expert Guillem Balague had the following to say:

“Real will be willing to sell him. Zidane has lost faith in him, Florentino Perez has lost faith in him, but they want to recover some of the money they spend on him.

“Mentally, he is not strong. He found himself on the bench, or rotated by Rafa Benitez, and instead of fighting for his place quietly he took opportunities in the press to subtly criticise Rafa Benitez. His agent Jorge Mendes put a lot of stories in the press to put pressure on Rafa.

“But Zidane, who has come in with even more authority, did the same thing, and James has not been able to fight his position. There is too much dragging of the feet and moaning for my liking, and it looks like for Zidane as well.

“At first, he was a weapon for the fans against Rafa, but now they have realised he is not a consistent player. He has quality, no doubt, but in this team you need to have much more than quality, and mentally he is not the strongest.

“Fans perceive that as well, so Mendes is looking for teams to sell him to.”

If Juventus were to make a move for him as CdS suggests, he’s likely to cost a pretty penny, considering Real Madrid paid €75m for him just two years ago.

Manchester United are known admirers of the player, however, CdS suggest James Rodriguez would prefer Serie A and the lifestyle in Italy.

Make of that what you will. It’s the first of many transfer ‘stories’ you’ll read this summer, each with their own degrees of plausibility.

Ask yourselves – Would Juventus spend a small fortune in transfer fees and salary for a 25-year-old who seems to have an attitude problem and a weak mentality? Yes, that’s what i thought.