Perhaps no membership was happier to see Enzo Fernandez be a part of Chelsea for a British document $131.4 million than Borussia Dortmund.
The benchmark has been set for prodigiously proficient midfielders, and forward of a summer time when Jude Bellingham is predicted to be available on the market it ought to drive up the worth of the German membership’s 19-year-old star.
“He’s a fantastic all-round modern midfield player. He’s got a touch of everything. He plays like a 23-, 24-year-old because of what he’s done at Dortmund and the amount of football he’s played,” former England coach Glenn Hoddle instructed The Associated Press. “He plays above his age.” Dortmund has a behavior of promoting a rising star yearly and Bellingham appears to be like set to be the following one.
The England worldwide can additional improve his popularity Wednesday when Dortmund hosts Chelsea in a Champions League round-of-16 match that places him head-to-head towards Fernandez.
Bellingham was one of many standout performers on the World Cup till England was eradicated by France within the quarterfinals. He has suitors from throughout Europe, with Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool all admirers.
He has additionally been linked with Real Madrid, whereas Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi mentioned in December, “Everybody wants him.” And whereas it was Fernandez who commanded a record-breaking transfer to Chelsea from Benfica throughout the January switch window, Dortmund might anticipate related affords for Bellingham on the finish of the season.
Dortmund’s first leg towards Chelsea might be Bellingham’s first sport of widespread worldwide curiosity for the reason that World Cup.
How he copes with Fernandez is more likely to be carefully monitored by these readying summer time bids.
The teenager already confirmed his single-mindedness by resisting United’s overtures to affix Dortmund in 2020. He was a starter for England on the World Cup in Qatar and has already captained his membership.
“You can’t look at him as inexperienced,” mentioned Hoddle, a BT Sport analyst who might be overlaying Wednesday’s match.
“Don’t look at experience by age or grey hairs because you can be experienced but doing the wrong thing all your life.
“We know he’s technically good, we know he’s got a good engine, he gets forward, can defend, all of those attributes, but for me it’s the mentality that’s the reason why he’s ahead of all these players.” Dortmund offered Jadon Sancho to United and Erling Haaland to City in current seasons. Both golf equipment are anticipated to be within the working for Bellingham.
“He’s already gone abroad, so he’s not scared of going abroad and living abroad, so Real Madrid would be a club that would be very difficult to turn down,” Hoddle mentioned. “If he’s going to come to England for me it would be City or Liverpool where he ends up. Liverpool is an interesting one. I think they need him more than any of the other four clubs at the top (of the Premier League).
“Whoever goes that extra mile, I think will get him. If he went to Real Madrid, I’d have no qualms about that. I could understand why the kid would do that.”
Source: sportstar.thehindu.com