German club Bayern Munich have signed Real Madrid forward James Rodriguez on a two-year loan deal with the option to buy.

The 25--year-old Columbian star, who signed a six-year contract at Bernabeu when he joined from Monaco for £71m in July 2014, made just 22 appearances in La Liga last season.

He had been linked with a summer move to Premier League champions Chelsea as well as Manchester United.

"Signing James Rodríguez was our coach Carlo Ancelotti's biggest wish," Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said.

"We're delighted we've been able to complete this transfer."

James, the top scorer at the 2014 World Cup, was signed by Ancelotti during the Italian's two-year spell as Real manager.

He made 111 competitive appearances for Real, scoring 36 goals and providing 41 assists, but was left out of the 18-man squad that beat Juventus in the Champions League final last season.