The James Rodriguez experiment at Real Madrid is all but finished. The 25-year-old Colombian attacker is moving to Bayern Munich on a two-year loan deal with an option to buy.

Not coincidentally, Bayern are now coached by the man who brought Rodriguez to Real Madrid in the first place, Carlo Ancelotti. Rodriguez moved to Madrid from Monaco after the 2014 World Cup, at which he won the Golden Boot, but he failed to consistently crack Real Madrid's starting lineup. Bayern Munich now have two World Cup Golden Boot winners, as Thomas Muller won the award in 2010.

Suffering from Champions League withdrawal?

It’s been less than a month since Real Madrid thrashed Juventus to claim the crown of top club in Europe, but teams are about to begin the quest to take away that crown.

The first qualifying round for the world’s premier club competition (go away, FIFA Club World Cup, no one cares about you) begins Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Here it is: your complete guide to the 2017 summer soccer schedule. 

For most sports, the offseason is a time of respite. Once the Super Bowl ends in February, NFL teams don’t suit up for another game, scrimmage or otherwise, for six months. Soccer, fortunately, doesn’t abide by such silly rules.

The European soccer season technically ends after the Champions League final around late May or early June, but preseason exhibitions pick up in early July. Then there are also international matches (friendlies and cups) to also fill the void. 

Alexis Sanchez figures to be one of the world's most targeted players in this summer's transfer window. The 28-year-old forward scored 29 goals in 50 appearances with Arsenal this campaign, and it was often clear that he was shouldering the load when the Gunners were struggling.

Alexis Sanchez for Arsenal in the Premier League 2016/17:

Most take-ons (109)
Most goals (24)
Most assists (10)
Most through balls (9)

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Having already clinched the league title, Bayern's 4-1 home victory on the final match day of this Bundesliga season was inspired by the retirements of Xabi Alonso and Philipp Lahm. 

SC Freiburg could have qualified for the Europa League with a win, so the stakes were certainly high for them. However, Bayern's quality was too much to overcome, and Alonso and Lahm went out with a win.

There it is!