James Rodriguez's fitness issues at Everton give reason to Zidane

With Everton not in action until 2021, James Rodriguez brings to an end a year in which he's played just 25 matches.

The Colombian hasn't featured in fewer games since his debut season at Porto, with injuries becoming a real worry once again in his career.

Over the last two years, James has missed up to 37 competitive games through injury with Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Everton.

In fact, the midfielder rarely appears in December, having played very few games in that month for the last three years.

Same story for Bale and Ceballos

Similarly to James, Gareth Bale and Dani Ceballos were not trusted by Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid, particularly because of their fitness problems.

This season, Jose Mourinho and Mikel Arteta have welcomed the two Real Madrid loanees to north London, though neither has featured regularly for their clubs.

Bale has played just 11 times since joining Tottenham, scoring three goals, while Ceballos has played 20 games for Arsenal since the start of this season.

When will James return?

"He will not be available for the next few games," said Carlo Ancelotti ahead of Everton's game against Sheffield United, answering that very question.

James hasn't played since December 5, suffering his latest injury in training shortly after that match against Burnley.

Everton's next game is against West Ham on January 1 but, going by Ancelotti's comments, it's very unlikely that he will have his No.19 fit in time.