In July, Real Madrid signed Jude Bellingham for a $111.39 million fee from German club Borussia Dortmund. Premier League club Liverpool were also reportedly interested in the 20-year-old English midfielder, but the player had no intention of looking beyond Los Blancos.
Jude Bellingham matches Cristiano Ronaldo’s Enviable Real Madrid record
A central midfielder by trait, Bellingham has played as an attacking midfielder in Carlo Ancelott’s fluid 4-3-1-2 formation. Despite playing in a considerably more advanced position than he is accustomed to, Bellingham has shone brightly for the Whites, pitching in with multiple match-winning performances.
The England international scored on his debut, helping Madrid to a 2-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao. The following week, he scored twice and claimed an assist as Real Madrid picked up a 3-1 away win over Almeria. He was on the money against Celta Vigo last Friday (August 25) as well, scoring the only goal of the game in the 81st minute.
With the goal, Bellingham equaled the record of one Cristiano Ronaldo. No player has scored four goals in his first three La Liga games for Real Madrid since the club’s record goalscorer (451 goals in 438 games) in 2009. More impressively, all of Bellingham’s four goals have come away from home, as renovations are still underway at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Spanish giants will play their first home game of the 2023-24 La Liga season against Getafe on Saturday (September 2).
Bellingham is Madrid’s latest poster boy in midfield
It is unlikely for Bellingham to sustain his scoring run and become one of Real Madrid’s all-time top scorers any time soon. But he has all it takes to become the leader of Los Blancos’ sensational midfield.
Real Madrid won three consecutive UEFA Champions League trophies between 2016 and 2018, becoming the first team in history to do so. Cristiano Ronaldo’s impeccable goalscoring run undoubtedly helped Madrid’s cause, but it was their world-class midfield that held it all together. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric pulled the strings with Casemiro shielding the backline, it was a winning formula.
Kroos and Modric are slowly moving to the background while Casemiro has been trying to build a legacy at Manchester United. It is time for a new batch of uber-talented players to form Los Blancos’ midfield, and there is hardly anyone more fitting to lead than Bellingham.
Flanked by Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni and supported by Federico Valverde, Bellingham gets the license to penetrate the final third. And so far, he has proven to be excellent at it. Even if Ancelotti drops the formation and moves back to a traditional 4-3-3, the Italian can rest assured knowing that Bellingham would be up for it as well. He is quick, composed, and not afraid to take his chances, making him the perfect modern-day maestro.
Although it might seem impossible, Bellingham gives Madridistas confidence. Assures them that the midfield will not stop firing when legendary pair Modric and Kroos finally bid the club adieu next summer. No 20-year-old in the world can boast of making such a sizable impact in such a short while.
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