James Rodriguez: a memorable first Bundesliga season in numbers
It was a memorable first Bundesliga season for James Rodriguez at Bayern Munich, and one that culminated in the Bavarian giants lifting the Meisterschale once again. While the attacking midfielder's goals and assists were crucial to Bayern's triumphant efforts, his overall contribution – playing deeper in midfield than usual – perhaps merits as much praise.
Brought to Bayern last summer on a two-year loan from Real Madrid at the behest of Carlo Ancelotti, who was relieved of his duties early in the campaign, James' form picked up after Jupp Heynckes took charge, the 26-year-old's link-up play with Thomas Müller particularly eye-catching. With no further ado, here are bundesliga.com's stand-out stats from James' first year in Germany.
Watch: It was an incredible debut Bundesliga season for James at Bayern!
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Goals: 7
James started the season slowly, first finding the net at Schalke on Matchday 5, but scored crucial goals against fellow European hopefuls RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund.
Assists: 11
Rather than stepping on Müller's toes, as some had feared might be the case, James dovetailed beautifully with his German colleague. The Colombian returned four assists in two games against Dortmund alone and ended the season third in the goal-creation charts, only behind Müller (14) and Augsburg's Philipp Max (12).
Appearances: 23
James made his Bundesliga debut from the bench in Matchday 3's 2-0 defeat at Hoffenheim; he was a starter on 19 occasions, and was introduced from the bench four times.
Chances created: 72
That's more than any other Bayern player – and in fewer games than most, too.
Shots: 40
James only required 5.7 shots per goal, an impressive return.
Set-pieces delivered: 126
James was a regular sight over Bayern free-kicks or corners. Three of those set-pieces led to goals, while 32 led to an attempt on target.
Passes completed: 1,397
At an average of more than 60 passes per game. As a point of note, of those passes, 87 were long balls, 74 finding their target. The Colombian's ability to mix it up from deep added an additional string to Bayern's attacking bow.
Challenges: 332
Not the highest figure (that honour belonged to Augsburg winger Caiuby, with an otherworldly 501), but an impressive return for a creative midfielder nonetheless.
Distance covered per game: 5.53 miles
This puts James 159th in the top-flight standings under this metric, but having only played 23 games, that's an acceptable return.
Top speed: 19.88 mph
If you consider that the Bundesliga's quickest player – Bayer Leverkusen's Karim Bellarabi – has been clocked at 21.92mph, then James is not too far off the pace.