It was impossible to know what Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham said when he approached Harry Kane as the Bayern Munich striker prepared to take a penalty in the first leg of the semi-final first leg of the Champions League Tuesday evening.
Whatever the precise words, it was highly unlikely that Bellingham would wish his international teammate good luck, and referee Clement Turpin had to intervene to tell the Madrid midfielder to move aside.
Not that Kane is unduly worried. “To be honest, I don’t know what he said,” the England captain told TNT Sport. “I was in the moment. I’m sure he was trying to say something to put me off.
Nothing was going to stop Harry Kane from achieving his goal 😤 pic.twitter.com/mR05vjxCPH
– Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 30, 2024
There is unlikely to be any lasting bad blood between two players who greeted each other warmly before kick-off. Yet the contrast between the image of Bellingham whispering in Kane’s ear in a bid to give his club an advantage and the image of him putting his arm around Kane moments after missing a crucial penalty for the England vs France in the 2022 World Cup. The quarter-final couldn’t have been better.
They also talk about two sides of Bellingham’s personality, both evident during his first season in Spain. There was never any doubt about the strength of character – his penchant for scoring late goals, including in both La Liga Clasicos, is testament to that.
While clearly enjoying the attention from his new team’s fans, Bellingham also received praise for sharing the spotlight: take, for example, his instructions to fans to applaud teammate Fede Valverde for setting him up to score against Osasuna in October.
He also provided some very selfless assistance to the team’s replacement striker, Joselu, the following month, subsequently explaining that he wanted to help a teammate who was having a difficult time in front of goal.
It looked like exceptional emotional intelligence and personal maturity, and helped make Bellingham phenomenally popular with Madrid teammates and fans.
His gesture towards Kane during this English quarter-final was also significant. Bellingham – then just 19 – was the only member of the England team to console the striker, and it showed a maturity beyond his years.
The flip side, however, is that Bellingham can also come close to the line – or even cross it – when things aren’t going so well, whether for him personally or for the team.
This was previously reported during his time at Borussia Dortmund, when Bellingham felt that some teammates were not reaching his own high standards, particularly when Dortmund wasted a great chance to win the Bundesliga title in May 2023.
Bellingham’s patience with Spanish referees has also worn thin quite quickly this season. He felt he was not receiving enough protection as rival defenders used every possible method to limit his influence on matches.
He received four yellow cards in six matches in January and February, mainly for dissent or “revenge” fouls, serving a punishment for accumulating yellow cards. Then came his most high-profile run with the authorities, when he received a red card for furious protests after referee Jesus Gil Manzano blew the full-time whistle when he thought he had scored another late winner during a La Liga match in Valencia in early March.
Bellingham was still angry when he left the Mestalla pitch that evening, quickly reposting an Instagram message that read: “The referee literally waited for Brahim Diaz to cross the ball! IT IS A SCANDAL. He quickly deleted this post from his account, but he was still banned for three matches.
GO FURTHER
Jude Bellingham is different – A portrait of Real Madrid’s new superstar
There was also the incident when Madrid faced Getafe in early February, and Bellingham clashed with fellow Englishman Mason Greenwood in a bad-tempered match against a physical Getafe side.
Getafe claimed Bellingham made an “offensive remark” to Greenwood, who joined the La Liga club on a season-long loan from Manchester United at the end of last summer’s transfer window. Greenwood had had charges of attempted rape, assault and coercive control dropped by the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in February 2023. He denied all alleged offences.
After consulting a lip reader, the Spanish Federation (RFEF) said no credible evidence of what Bellingham allegedly said to Greenwood had been found, and the case was closed.
Bellingham received the full support of Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti and the club’s hierarchy after the Greenwood and Mestalla incidents, and everyone at the Bernabeu was keen to look after their latest emerging superstar.
Fans also won’t worry about the signs of a sore loser, or even their taste for the game. Both fit perfectly with the club’s image as a place where winning is the most important thing ( even if it goes against the “gentlemanly” values they also boast about).
Bellingham’s career has been at warp speed so far: he became Birmingham City’s youngest first-team player just after his 16th birthday, he moved to Germany at the youngest age of 17 Dearest of history, he played for England in two international tournaments while still a 17-year-old player. teenager, and is now making such a sensational start to his career at the Bernabeu.
All this attracts attention and pressure. Above all, Bellingham showed that he was able to handle this and channel everything he feels into spectacular performances and moments for his team. Yet for all his many talents, Bellingham is no Superman, and there have been signs recently that he is feeling the strains of his incredible first season in Spain.
He struggled to make an impact in both Champions League quarter-finals against Manchester City. And if he followed up with the winning goal against Barcelona 10 days ago, he was discreet again against Bayern, his first match in Germany since his departure from Dortmund.
“Jude didn’t play at his best today, but he will be back very soon,” said Ancelotti, who also revealed that Bellingham was out due to cramps. “He will be 100 percent by Wednesday.”
Could Bellingham’s character lead to behavior that could be better controlled? Maybe. And hosting your national captain in the Champions League semi-final probably isn’t the smartest idea.
But if Bellingham’s career has taught us anything, it’s that he’ll do things his way.
(Top photos: TNT Sports and Getty Images)