Colombia's James Rodriguez scored and danced his way into the hearts of World Cup fans Saturday. (Well, except for Uruguayans.)
The 22-year-old midfielder scored two goals in Colombia's victory over a Luis Suarez-less Uruguay side. Rodriguez's first goal rivaled the magical shots of the Netherlands' Robin van Persie and Australia's Tim Cahill. But neither van Persie nor Cahill could match James' hip-swiveling post-goal celebration.
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With two goals against Uruguay, Rodriguez moves ahead of Germany's Thomas Muller and Argentina's Lionel Messi in the race for the World Cup's Golden Boot. The beauty of his shots had Twitter wondering if Rodriguez would emerge as the sport's next megastar.
Messi, Neymar ... Rodriguez? 2014 #WorldCup witnessing the birth of a megastar, man.— Sam Laird (@samcmlaird) June 28, 2014
Top scorer. Messi who? Neymar who? Its James Rodriguez— Danielle (@GirlMufc) June 28, 2014
James Rodriguez ... the new/next Cristiano Ronaldo #WC2014Brasil #Jussayin— Fix Moeti (@Fixsacious) June 28, 2014
Off the pitch, Rodriguez spends time doing adorable things with his daughter, Salome.
A tattoo on his forearm bears her name, and in Saturday's game, Rodriguez made sure to kiss the ink after each goal. Adorbs.
So, will Rodriguez join the ranks of World Cup elite? Let's wait for the next match and, in the meantime, just enjoy the charm and talent of Rodriguez.
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Colombia takes on Brazil July 4.