Real Madrid and England sensation Jude Bellingham once made a surprising choice by including a Manchester United player in his ideal five-a-side team.
At 21, Bellingham has become one of the most talked-about footballers globally, thanks to his outstanding performances.
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After rising through the ranks at Birmingham City, Bellingham moved to German powerhouse Borussia Dortmund in 2020. ..Continue Reading
Following three years in the Bundesliga, the English star joined Madrid and has since evolved into one of the world’s best players, finishing third in the 2024 Ballon d’Or rankings.
In 2021, Bellingham was asked to select four players to join him in a five-a-side team.
During an interview with SportsJOE at the Sports Personality of the Year awards, Bellingham chose Madrid and France icon Zinedine Zidane, along with his former Dortmund teammates Erling Haaland, Marco Reus, and Jadon Sancho.
Sancho, who has faced challenges since his move from Dortmund to United, was loaned to Chelsea at the beginning of the 2024/25 season.
To date, the 24-year-old has scored two goals and provided six assists in 21 appearances for the Stamford Bridge club across all competitions.
Explaining his decision to include Sancho, Bellingham said: “Yeah I got there [moving to Borussia Dortmund] and from the first day, he was just looking after me, making sure I was always alright.
“His vibe is unmatched in the game, I think. I think the way he goes about his business, he plays with a style, off the pitch, he has a style.”
He added: “He’s got a great vibe and he’s really positive. I think it does rub off on a lot of the players.”
Touching on the legendary Zidane, Bellingham said: “You know what, I’ll go with [Zinedine] Zidane. I know I’ve obviously not played with him but I can’t stop watching clips of him.
“He’s probably my favourite midfielder. Him and [Steven] Gerrard are probably neck and neck. I’ve been watching a lot of Zidane recently.
“You talk about elegance, there’s players that score a goal a game and assist, but I think people have forgotten about the beautiful side of football where it’s not all about stats and you can just sit and watch them.”
Bellingham has enjoyed a good campaign with Los Blancos, having registered 10 goals and 10 assists in 30 games.
Real Madrid are back in action this weekend when they take on local rivals Atletico on Saturday.
