There is a discrepancy in Jude Bellingham’s calculations that can be noticed without a math degree.
Last season, there were ten goals in eleven games. This season: no goals in nine games. Something is off. Or is it?
Spanish journalists have been eager to criticize the 21-year-old. He has been ‘completely eclipsed’ by his teammates and appears to have ‘declined’. Bellingham just collaborated with Adidas to create signature Predator boots, but he has become the prey. No longer untouchable.
Carlo Ancelotti defends his star player, stating that he is’more important’ than last year and is’very satisfied’ with the Englishman. He’s not the sort to bluster.
So, what’s happening? On Tuesday night, Real Madrid will face Borussia Dortmund, their Champions League opponents from last season and the club where Bellingham rose to prominence. It’s an appropriate time to reflect.
Jude Bellingham’s untouchable status at Real Madrid has faded and he is battling critics
The arrival of Kylian Mbappe means a new expensive toy is on the block at the Bernabeu
The Spanish press have accused him of declining but in truth his role has changed dramatically
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The truth is that Bellingham’s role has changed, and that he is no longer the focal point of this star-studded cornucopia.
In the summer Madrid ended their long-distance dalliance with Kylian Mbappe and tempted him from the banks of the River Seine with a signing-on fee of £85.6million and a club-high £12.8m net salary – admittedly a wage lower than his one at PSG.
Alongside image rights from commercial deals, Mbappe’s income won’t be far off the annual revenue Madrid drew from the Santiago Bernabeu pre-renovation.
When you invest in a player so forcefully, the landscape on the pitch changes. And so you get a line-up like the one for the UEFA Super Cup final against Atalanta, which saw Mbappe up front flanked by Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo.
Bellingham, deployed for large chunks of last season as a number 10 behind the striker, had to settle for the left portion of a midfield three. And that’s basically where he’s been shunted all season, out on the left of a three or four, lingering in the shadow of Mbappe and Vini and doing the dirty work.
He knew it halfway through the opening LaLiga game of the season against Mallorca. ‘Finish the attacks because the running back is f***ing hard,’ he told the front trident.
That frustration has continued. In the 2-1 win over Celta Vigo on Sunday, he gestured furiously and kicked the turf after Vinicius Jr chose to shoot rather than put it on a plate for him. Behold: the illustration of his diminished stature. Ancelotti has had to pour freezing water on rumours of a rift.
Of course, Bellingham would sometimes operate out on the flanks last season, but he had much more freedom to roam across the final third, rather than sitting tight and waiting to respond to threats.
At the weekend he grew frustrated with Vinicius Jr for not passing to him, but this is reality now
Bellingham must play a supporting role and do the heavy lifting to free up the forwards
He is playing in a role more similar to his one at Borussia Dortmund than last season’s
Madrid are vulnerable to counter-attacks now that Mbappe has joined the club, and his sluggish approach to defence has angered boss Luis Enrique. ‘The day you can’t attack, you must be the greatest defender of all time. That is a leader. That’s Michael Jordan,’ Enrique added, calling out Mbappe in front of the team.
Bellingham has support in the Madrid midfield, but he is frequently the first line of defense when an assault falters. This season, it’s about anticipating obstacles rather than box-crashing runs. Putting out a fire before it starts.
This season, his average tackles per game is up to three from 1.74, while his interceptions are up to 1.22 from 0.70. He has already made 32 tackles and thirteen interceptions. When compared to Declan Rice’s 19 and 16 and Moises Caicedo’s 21 and 16, you can see how his job is more like that of a midfield suppressor, similar to Dortmund-era Bellingham.
‘He works extremely hard, competing, fighting, and sacrificing himself. The truth is that he hasn’t scored as many goals as he did last year, but the surprise is from last year, not this year,’ Ancelotti added.
‘Last year, he scored a lot of goals that nobody predicted. He is still really helpful right now. The problem this year is not a lack of goals for Bellingham; we have always scored goals and will continue to do so because we have a lot of quality up front. For us right now, the work he’s doing is far more vital.
Ancelotti even moved Bellingham to the right flank against Celta because he believed he had been overexposed in prior games. His priorities have shifted.
Ancelotti does not want him in the box as often. This season, he averaged 3.67 touches in the opponents’ area per game, a significant decrease from 5.26.
This transition has been in the works for a time. Bellingham’s offensive numbers have declined since January, and he conceded in April that his role had shifted.