James Rodríguez Closes In on Atlético Nacional Move as Club Debates His Jersey Number

The name that has half of Colombia dreaming already has a green jersey nearly locked in. James Rodríguez is on the verge of becoming an Atlético Nacional player, and while the final details of the contract get ironed out, people in Medellín are already thinking about a detail that matters plenty to fans: what number will end up on his back.

The midfielder from Cúcuta became a free agent after the World Cup, where he played 5 matches for the Colombian national team without scoring a goal or recording an assist. Since then he has trained on his own, waiting for an offer that would convince him. With the European market essentially shut, Nacional emerged as the most concrete option and, above all, as a homecoming at just the right moment.

According to ESPN journalist Melissa Martínez, the initial proposal would be for a one year contract, with an option to extend it if things go well. The appeal, beyond the financial side, has to do with the project itself: Nacional wants to build a competitive squad with an eye on the 2027 Copa Libertadores, and James would be a central piece of that plan.

They offered to build a team around him for the Copa LibertadoresMelissa Martínez

The journalist also dropped a detail that should reassure any fan: the relationship between James and Lucas González, the team's head coach, is said to be good from the start, with mutual respect and the kind of working atmosphere needed to begin a chapter that will draw so much media attention.

The number dilemma

So why all the fuss over a number? Because the number 10, the one James would want for historical and symbolic reasons, already belongs to Edwin Cardona this Liga BetPlay season. Under the rules, that leaves James unable to simply take it. Pipe Sierra reported that the club is working on securing an exception from the tournament organizers to unlock the switch and get Cardona to give up the number, taking another one of the available options instead.

It doesn't end there. The number 19, another jersey James tends to favor, isn't free either: it belongs to Juan Manuel Rengifo, who has worn it since last semester and kept it for this second cycle of 2026.

With those two routes complicated, a third option emerges that's much simpler to sort out: the number 11, which currently has no owner on Nacional's roster. It wouldn't be an unfamiliar number for James, since he wore it during his time at Bayern Munich. For some historical perspective, the most unusual number he's worn in his career was 55, which he wore in the Copa Libertadores during his stint at Sao Paulo.

While the number question gets sorted out, what does seem to be on track is the presentation date. If Nacional makes the signing official in the coming hours, the plan is to introduce him to the fans this weekend, in the match against Águilas Doradas at the Atanasio Girardot. The signature is still pending, but everything suggests Medellín is getting ready to welcome one of the most important players the country has produced.