James Rodriguez to Make Home Debut for Minnesota Against Sounders

James Rodriguez will play at home for the first time on Sunday when Minnesota United faces the Seattle Sounders in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

The 34-year-old midfielder gained fame by winning the Golden Boot for Colombia during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He joined Minnesota United (1-2-1, 4 points) on February 6 but missed the first three matches due to an injury and visa issues.

Rodriguez made his MLS debut last Sunday, coming on in a 6-0 loss to Vancouver for the last 26 minutes and creating one scoring opportunity.

After Saturday’s practice, Minnesota United coach Cameron Knowles did not reveal Rodriguez’s role for the upcoming match against Seattle (3-1-0, 9 points).

“We’ll see,” Knowles said to the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Given that the Loons just faced their biggest loss in ten years, a significant role for Rodriguez seems likely. Minnesota has allowed a league-high 11 goals, tied with the Portland Timbers, and trailed 5-0 by the time Rodriguez entered the game.

“It was tough coming on like that,” Rodriguez commented. “We were already behind by many goals, but I came on to do my job. I think I played well and feel good personally.”

Rodriguez, who will leave for international duty with Colombia after the match, is eager to perform well at home.

“The good thing is that we’re at home, and we need to do things right to win,” he said.

Seattle will play its fifth match in 16 days and recently won 2-1 against Vancouver in Spokane, Washington, securing a spot in the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup with an aggregate score of 5-2.

Paul Rothrock, who scored the winner in Seattle’s 1-0 victory over San Jose last Sunday, also netted the decisive goal against Vancouver in the 83rd minute, making it four goals in five matches across all competitions this season.

“He’s on a roll,” said Seattle coach Brian Schmetzer. “Whether he starts or comes on, Paul is performing at a high level.”

This match is a rematch of last November’s Round One in the MLS Cup playoffs, which ended in a penalty shootout. Minnesota’s goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair scored a penalty, while Seattle’s keeper Andrew Thomas hit the crossbar.