After making his LaLiga debut for Real Madrid on Saturday night, Jude Bellingham seemed to have immediately won over the hearts of the Spanish media.
Big things are expected of the midfielder after he completed his £113 million transfer to the Santiago Bernabeu in June, and he did not dissapoint against Athletic Bilbao, volleying in his side’s second goal in a 2-0 opening day triumph shortly before halftime.
As though he had been playing in the league for years, Bellingham raced over to celebrate with his teammates in front of the Bilbao supporters.
He continued to play well as Madrid easily won, and the Spanish media seem to believe a celebrity has been born in Spain as a result
The AS headline on Sunday morning, coupled with a picture of Bellingham celebrating his goal by pumping his chest, read, “Bellingham is the boss.”
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Jude Bellingham starred on his Real Madrid debut, scoring a volley in the first half
AS labelled him ‘the boss’ after his dream debut for the Spanish giants on Saturday night
Marca compared Bellingham to a ‘cathedral’ after he dominated the midfield battle
The 20-year-old England star plays with a maturity beyond his years and is more than capable of holding his own physically on the field.Marca described Bellingham as “a player like a cathedral” beside a photo of him with his arms extended in front of a sea of Bilbao supporters.
Additionally, they said that Bellingham’s debut had been like a “exhibition” because he had once again dazzled on the grandest stage, as he had for England and Borussia Dortmund in recent years.
Madrid failed to improve on their previous campaign, when they won the title and the Champions League under Carlo Ancelotti, finishing 10 points behind Barcelona in LaLiga.
But given Bellingham’s performance on Saturday, they have good cause to believe they can overtake their opponents this year with him in the lineup.
Bellingham won’t make his Bernabeu debut until September 2, as Madrid waits for the final touches to be applied to the renovation of their storied stadium before returning to action on Saturday when they travel to Almeria.