According to AS, there are concerns in England that Jude Bellingham could get injured before the European Championship due the amount of minutes he has played and because he already played with shoulder and ankle issues.
The England international is also the second most fouled player in La Liga, further fuelling fears that England manager Gareth Southgate may be without his star man at the summer tournament or without a fully fit version of the player.
Bellingham has already cemented himself as a vital component of the Real Madrid side and has made a great impression at Los Blancos by breaking goalscoring records set by icons such as Cristiano Ronaldo. Coinciding with this, the injuries to Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni have made the presence of the 20-year-old even more important.
Carlo Ancelotti knows that the midfielder needs a rest, but with Girona tied on points at the top of the table and Barca just four points away, the Italian manager is forced to play him. Madrid want to end the year at the top of La Liga and therefore the €106m player is guaranteed to start against Betis, Villarreal and Alavés.
However, Ancelotti may rest his star player against Union Berlin in the final Champions League group stage match as there is nothing at stake with Madrid already through to the knockout stage as group winners. Due to Bellingham’s form, teams are now marking him very tightly which has led to him receiving the second most fouls in the league, only behind Betis playmaker Isco.
In the recent match against Granada, Madrid’s number five was subject to some heavy challenges and was infuriated by the situation as he wasn’t receiving free-kicks despite some clear and obvious fouls. The fears in England derive from the large number of tackles he is receiving and because of his workload which could leave him physically exhausted before the Euros or see him pick up an unwanted muscle injury.
This season, Bellingham is the third most used player by Ancelotti only behind Fede Valverde and Antonio Rudiger. HE has missed three games this season with two of his absences being as a result of his shoulder troubles, while on the other occasion, he was rested against Las Palmas.
Furthermore, the club’s latest galáctico is rarely taken off, meaning he has nearly played 1,500 minutes, and against Granada, it was evident that he was struggling with his current workload.
Bellingham has already played 15,000 minutes at a professional level and in England, his situation is compared to that of Pedri and Gavi, who have both been regulars for Barca before picking up long-term injuries.
Despite these fears, Ancelotti will continue to use the attacking midfielder as he knows he is pivotal to their chances of winning La Liga and the Champions League, while in England they will hope that Bellingham remains in top condition come the end of the season so that Southgate’s men can compete for the European Championship.
Rajan Sangha | GSFN
