KANSAS CITY (United States) — Jude Bellingham arrived at the World Cup facing a battle to secure a place in England’s starting line-up, but emphatically ended any debate with a barnstorming display against Croatia.
The Real Madrid midfielder, chosen ahead of his good friend Morgan Rogers in the No 10 role, scored his team’s vital third goal as they won their opening match 4-2 on Wednesday.
Bellingham earned rave reviews after Thomas Tuchel’s men dominated the second half in Arlington, Texas.
It was not a perfect performance — he gave the ball away in the build-up to Croatia’s first goal — but ultimately that was forgotten.
In the afterglow of victory, it was easy to forget that the 22-year-old landed in the United States unsure if he would even be in Tuchel’s first-choice XI.
Bellingham missed England’s camp in September after undergoing shoulder surgery and was left out of the October internationals despite making it clear he was fit and raring to go.
Tuchel insisted at the time that his decision was due to the midfielder’s “lack of rhythm” and was nothing personal. But it came after strong words from the manager about Bellingham’s behaviour just months earlier.
Bellingham ‘noise’
Bellingham, who endured an injury-hit and turbulent season in Madrid, said after the Croatia win that he hoped his pivotal goal would silence the “noise” around him.
“For me personally it was nice to put some of the noise aside and show my country, show my teammates, how committed I am to helping us win football matches,” he told the BBC.
The midfielder admitted he had “a little bit of a chip on my shoulder”, saying it helped him find “focus” and “intensity”.
“I know it’s part of being a footballer, I don’t hold a grudge about anyone that says bad things about me because sometimes I do deserve it,” he said according to AFP.
“Today I think it was nice to try and show people and remind people what I’m about.”
The Englishman is one of the best midfielders of his generation but has faced criticism for his aggressive on-field behaviour.
A year ago Tuchel said in an interview with radio station Talksport that even his own mother found some of Bellingham’s antics “repulsive”.
The German subsequently apologised for that remark, which he made following England’s 3-1 home friendly defeat by Senegal.
In the same interview he said he had no wish to quell Bellingham’s “fire”.
“He has a certain something. I think he brings an edge which we welcome and which is needed if we want to achieve big things,” said Tuchel.
“It needs to be channelled towards the opponent and towards our goal, and not to intimidate teammates or to be over-aggressive towards teammates or referees.”
Bellingham remains popular among England’s fanbase, with many wearing shirts bearing his name at the game in Texas.
Veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson went out of his way last week to highlight Bellingham’s positive role off the pitch, including how he deals with young players.
“I do think a lot of the media and the stuff that gets written isn’t all true, to be honest,” he said at England’s training base in Kansas City.
“A lot of it is actually untrue. But for us, we all know what he can do and how much we all love him inside the camp, and I suppose that’s the main thing.”
