A vital moment during Real Madrid’s Madrid’s thumping of Barcelona has demonstrated that Jude Bellingham is already a leader at the club.
Bellingham left Borussia Dortmund for Los Blancos last summer for a reported £88.5 million, and it’s fair to say that he has been well worth the money.
With 24 games across all competitions, the 20-year-old has already notched up 17 goals and six assists, giving the impression that he has played for Real Madrid his whole life.
What has truly impressed me about Bellingham, aside from his goal scoring and that memorable celebration, is his demeanor both on and off the field.
It was made very evident during Sunday’s Spanish Super Cup final that the English midfield player is an old man.
Carlos Ancelotti’s team humiliated fierce rivals Barcelona in order to get revenge for their loss in the previous year’s Super Cup final.
At halftime, Vinicius Junior’s hat-trick put Madrid comfortably in control after Robert Lewandowski had given Xavi’s team a response.
But if Bellingham hadn’t done what she did, the Brazilian striker would not have had the chance to score three goals.
Video footage has surfaced showing Bellingham passing the ball to a teammate who is three years older than him after Madrid was given a penalty kick late in the first half.
Normally, the youthful midfield player would take penalty kicks, but he handed Vinicius the opportunity to complete his hat-trick, and the 23-year-old scored flawlessly.
Before the kick, the two were heard talking, and it seems like Bellingham told Vinicius, “Next time, it’s for me.”
Vinicius whirled away in jubilation after putting the penalty past Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena, then turned back to gesture gratitude to Bellingham.
The Brazilian has had a difficult few years both on and off the field since he became involved in a racism issue involving Spanish football. But this season, he appears to be acting more like himself, and part of it can be attributed to his collaboration with Bellingham.
Although Bellingham is a very gifted football player for his age, his attitude and capacity to improve the play of his teammates may be even more remarkable.