How Did James Rodríguez Make This Pass?

Colombia rebounded nicely from a 2-1 loss to Japan with a 3-0 shellacking of Poland in their second World Cup game today. The icing on top was a goal from Juan Cuadrado, but the scorer had a pretty easy job. All Cuadrado had to do is run a breakaway to the net, while it was James Rodríguez who had to create the entire opportunity out of thin air.

James has had a topsy-turvey career path since his breakout performances in the last World Cup, but this is a taste of that 2014 magic. It’s impressive that he even sees Cuadrado from a position that far wide, let alone actually does the kicking sorcery required to spin the ball around three Polish dudes and into the direct path of his teammate. I really, really, don’t know how the heck James does it, and that’s what makes it such a wonderful sight to see.