Bell of the ball
Jude has world at his feet and could end up an England great
TWENTY years from now, when we deliberate over the identity of England’s greatest ever player, there’s every chance we will conclude it is Jude Bellingham.
That’s no exaggeration, nor is it an impulsive reaction to what was a breathtaking World Cup debut here at the Khalifa Stadium.
It is just a statement of fact; a realistic observation for an impressive young man who has the world at his feet.
The box-to-box dynamism of Steven Gerrard, an eye for goal akin to Frank Lampard and the passing range of Paul Scholes. The total package. He knows it, too.
Not in an arrogant way, but in a manner that exudes confidence in his ability.
Bellingham had just scored his first goal for England and it just so happened to arrive on his debut in football’s most famous competition. Not that you would have known it judging by his reaction. There was no frenzied celebration from Bellingham. Stonyfaced, he merely jogged off to the corner flag before raising his arms aloft to receive the adulation of England’s fans. Almost as if this was an everyday occurrence. It was the measure of a teenager who continues to show maturity way beyond his 19 years.
It was the mark of a man — if we can call him that — who knows he belongs on the biggest stage of all. Luckily for us, he’s English.
It wasn’ t just Bellingham’s goal that set him apart here. Inside two minutes he was collecting the ball before arrowing a pinpoint 40-yard pass into Kieran Trippier’s path. Moments later he was effortlessly evading the attentions of Iran’s midfield with a subtle drop of his shoulder before rapping another ball into Luke Shaw.
In the 55th minute, with the game already won as England poured forward in search of a fourth, Bellingham had the awareness and discipline to hold his position, in doing so thwarting what would have been a dangerous Iranian counter-attack.
Later in the second half, he was filling in at centre back as England were momentarily reduced to 10 men in the absence of Harry Maguire, who had limped off feeling ill.
His goal, a superbly executed header that drifted past Iran’s hapless keeper Hossein Hosseini, was the icing on the cake of a performance that should petrify every team here at the World Cup. Not just for this tournament, either. Bellingham is England’s present and future — for at least the next 12 years.
It’s up to him how good he wants to be, but by all accounts Bellingham is a young man who has his head screwed on, kept on the straight and narrow by his policeman father Mark.
You don’t make a success of a move to Germany as a 17-year-old in the way Bellingham has if you have a tendency to lose focus.
His performance in England’s tournament opener will not have come as a surprise to European football’s top clubs.
They know all about how good he is. They know how good he can be. Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United will all battle it out to sign Bellingham when Borussia Dortmund are finally ready to sell, a moment which could come as early as this summer. Real Madrid are watching carefully too.
Bellingham will come at a huge cost, surely in excess of £100million, especially after what took place here yesterday.
But that’s all for the future. Bellingham’s present is trying to help England win the World Cup.
Can’t win anything with kids? Bellingham could soon disprove that theory.
As could Bukayo Saka. As could Mason Mount. As could Declan Rice. As could Phil Foden. These kids are more than just all right, they are world beaters — and Bellingham is arguably the best of the lot.
The pessimists will say we are getting ahead of ourselves. They will say ‘it’s only Iran’. Well, they would be wrong.
These kids are truly special. They may not forgive us for calling them England’s next golden generation but that is exactly what they are.
If this World Cup is to be Gareth Southgate’s last hurrah then the guy that replaces him will land on his feet.
And in Bellingham, England have a supremely talented footballer who can lead England to history in Qatar and beyond.