James Rodriguez's toughest week Real Madrid Going through a bad spell

James Rodriguez is going through his worst season in Europe in sporting terms, with a personal issue now adding to his despair.

The Real Madrid playmaker's grandmother has had some health issues in the last few months and the player has contemplated travelling back to Colombia to visit her.

Moreover, last Monday reports claimed that during a meeting in Madrid, Colombia boss Carlos Queiroz indicated that he can't guarantee that James will be a starter due to his lack of playing time with Los Blancos.

According to leaked information, the player responded that if he is not considered as a starter for the World Cup qualifiers and the upcoming Copa America, he would prefer to be left out of the squad.

His alleged response sparked controversy, but the truth is that James did accept his coach's decision.

However, the Colombia international is upset with those who took the reports for granted.

Although the last three months haven't been ideal for James, he kicked off the ongoing season with some promising omens.

After a loan spell at Bayern Munich, he returned to the club he always wanted to shine with.

James wasn't one of Zidane's first-choice players at the start of the season, but he gradually gained some playing time until the infamous defeat away at Real Mallorca.

That was the turning point for James, who was subsequently injured during the international break that followed and ended the calendar year without being a part of his coach's plans.

Zidane, however, was willing to help the player rediscover his form and gave him two opportunities in the Copa del Rey wins against Unionistas de Salamanca and Real Zaragoza.

Real Madrid were eliminated from the Copa at the hands of Real Sociedad and it's doubtful whether James will manage to get a spot in the team's starting line-up again until the end of the season.