James plays his first minutes with Rayo, who win 3-1 against Osasuna

The goal of Raúl in the 27th minute it seemed to complicate the night for Rayo Vallecano. It remained to be seen if there would be an opportunity for the long-awaited debut of James Rodriguez who had aroused enormous enthusiasm among the fans. The chants of his name rose in volume at half-time, when he came out to warm up with the rest of the substitutes, including the veteran Isi Palazon.

It had been four years and two months since his last game for Real Madrid. At 33, the Colombian midfielder arrives at Rayo revitalised after being named best player of the Copa América and having played a remarkable game against Argentina in the World Cup qualifiers, in which he scored one goal and set up another.

If Raúl’s goal was spectacular, it was by no means less than that of My wax The second half had just begun. His violent left-footed shot surprised the Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera. Fruits and Palazón were the first alternatives of Inigo Perez. Unai López would come out a few minutes later. Vallecas would still have to wait for James.

Ratio James put the home side ahead in the 67th minute, helped by the ball rebounding off a defender from the Navarrese team. Prolonged by much more than a murmur in the stands, James came on to the field in the 86th, accompanied by Guardiola. The Colombian had a total of 10 minutes, with six added minutes, to touch the ball, each of which was cheered on by his supporters. Surely on Sunday, with the visit of Atlético de Madrid, the fans, who still saw Unai López’s 3-1 in the happy culmination of a counterattack, will have more time to enjoy James.