The 21-year-old's talent is beyond dispute, but there have long been rumours that his attitude annoys team-mates
Euro 2024 didn't really tell us anything about Jude Bellingham that we didn't already know. The kid is world-class – but he's also quite cocky. These twin traits were perfectly illustrated by the last-gasp overhead kick he scored against Slovakia that kept England in the tournament – and the immediately iconic/infamous "Who else?" celebration that followed.
Before the tournament began, Bellingham's boastfulness wasn't considered a bad thing. He's got "an arrogance" about him, England legend Alan Shearer said on June 13, but "in a good way". The narrative has now changed, though, with Bellingham going from superstar to scapegoat in the space of a month.
Within 24 hours of England's 2-1 final loss to Spain, several media outlets were briefed that Bellingham's demeanour – on and off the field – had annoyed some of his team-mates in Germany. According to the reports, Bellingham had a bit of a 'Messiah complex'. He'd apparently bought into the message conveyed in his pre-tournament adidas advertisement that he was some sort of saviour of English football, the generational talent sent to deliver a long-suffering set of supporters from 58 years of hurt. Some of his team-mates allegedly felt that such an individualistic idea was completely at odds with the team mentality Gareth Southgate had cultivated during his time in charge of the Three Lions.
Is there a risk, then, of Bellingham believing his own hype and becoming too big for his boots? Or are we looking at another classic case of the notoriously fickle English press knocking another prodigy off the very same pedestal that they had put him on (see Wayne Rooney and David Beckham for more!)?
Getty ImagesSomething about Jude
Bellingham has never hidden the fact that he doesn't "lack confidence" – which is a 'humble brag', a polite way of saying that he has the utmost faith in his own ability. That's no bad thing for a footballer, of course. In fact, it's absolutely essential for anyone with designs on becoming the best player in the world – just look at Cristiano Ronaldo, for example. As Shearer told , "To be a top player, you need to have that something about you, and Jude has got that."
He's also in possession of admirable drive and a ferocious work ethic. He is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve success.
Bellingham felt "drained physically" after the 2022 World Cup quarter-final loss to France, which frustrated him enormously given England had been the better side for the majority of the game, and admitted he needed "a nice, long rest". And yet two weeks later he couldn't wait to get back training, Bellingham more determined than ever before to win a major trophy with his country.
Advertisement(C)Getty Images'Bellingham has to be careful'
Then, there's the fact that Bellingham is often his own harshest critic. After the France loss in Qatar, he chastised himself for not doing more to prevent England's elimination.
"There was an instance in a later training session where I scored with a shot and I thought, 'That was just like the one that I had in the quarter-final.' If I put the ball more to the left, would we have gone through?" he told FIFA.
"I was involved in second penalty (crucially missed by Harry Kane), when I put the pass behind to Mason [Mount]. I always think, 'What if I'd just put it on Mason's toe and he went and scored?' There would have been no second penalty."
Clearly, this relentless pursuit of perfection partly explains why he's come so far, and in such a short space of time. He is constantly striving to improve. It's not in the least bit surprising, then, that a player that holds himself to such high standards expects others to do likewise. In that sense, he's a little like Roy Keane in that he is incessantly demanding more from his team-mates. However, even the Irishman was critical of the Slovakia celebration.
"If you scored a big goal, to me that wouldn't even cross your mind. You'd be with your team-mates," Keane argued on 'Stick To Football: The Overlap Special'. "Scoring goals is the best part of football, but I just can't imagine that you'd have something in your head to say, 'Who else?' That's the bit where I'd be going, 'Hold on a second'. It's a bit cocky and arrogant.
"Bellingham has to be careful. You're always walking a fine line; you don't want it to seem like it's all about you." Particularly at such a young age.
Getty ImagesTaking the credit but never the blame
Keane – who, like Bellingham, was also prone to becoming incredibly frustrated by team-mates – was 26 before he took command of the Manchester United dressing room, and the players welcomed his appointment as captain because he had earned both their respect and that level of authority. He had spent his early years at Old Trafford learning what it took to be leader from the likes of Bryan Robson.
Bellingham, by contrast, was made part of the England squad's leadership group before he'd even turned 21 – despite being previously accused of suffering from delusions of grandeur ever since he broke into the Borussia Dortmund team as a teenager.
There was a suspicion at Signal Iduna Park that he was very quick to take the credit for victories, but utterly unwilling to accept any of the blame for defeats. Some colleagues were said to be so put out by being berated by Bellingham for misplaced passes during games that Emre Can had to take his fellow midfielder aside and tell him that the very public displays of disapproval were simply not acceptable.
Getty'Don't do something stupid'
We saw similar shows of dissatisfaction in Germany this summer, as England stumbled their way through to the final, with Bellingham quite visibly annoyed at times by the perceived failings of some of his team-mates.
"He was turning round to look at others and throwing his arms up," ex-England captain Wayne Rooney wrote in after the group game against Slovenia. "Body language like that sends a message to the fans, to his team-mates, to the manager.
"I've been in those shoes. I know it's hard. He reminds me of myself in tournaments where you want so desperately to do well and know you and the team could be playing better, and it gets to you. But don’t do something stupid, Jude."
Jude did something special instead, of course, with his spectacular strike against Slovakia in the last 16 saving England from an embarrassingly early exit. He also contributed an assist for Cole Palmer in the final, which only emphasised that this is an immense talent capable of producing big moments in big games.
However, his overall performance in Berlin, coupled with his all-too-obvious on-field frustration, also hammered home the fact that Bellingham still has much to learn. He lashed out at Southgate during the final – and a water cooler after it. Then came the very deliberately timed leaks to the press regarding dressing-room discontent with Bellingham's behaviour.