Carlo Ancelotti had ruled out James Rodriguez Everton clash with West Ham United still Wednesday, just 48 hours later, the Colombian was sitting on the bench.
Even more surprising, however, was when Ancelotti made the Colombian enter with 30 minutes left to try to break the deadlock.
Still, it would be ineffective as James was wasting the pace, which makes sense considering he hadn’t played for almost a month.
It was Ancelotti himself who acknowledged at the end of the match that his midfielder was not yet in shape.
“James had some problems that didn’t allow him to play or train much and against West Ham he only played 30 minutes,” he said after the 1-0 home defeat.
“He has to improve his condition, but he will be much better in the next few games.”