It is pretty much an open secret that Real Madrid want to sign Jude Bellingham next summer and why would not they? On one hand, the club need to strengthen their options in the middle of the park. Luka Modric is 37 years of age and in the twilight of his career, even though he is performing at a high level. There have been suggestions that Toni Kroos could retire at the end of this season. And Dani Ceballos’ future is uncertain as well, with his contract in its final six months.
On the other hand, Bellingham has all the potential to be the next big midfielder in the game. He is arguably one of the best midfielders in the world at 19 years of age, having established himself as one of the most important players at both club and international level.
He has also already captained a club like Borussia Dortmund at 19, proving his leadership skills. Thus, it is safe to say that Bellingham ticks every box that one could ask for, when looking for the backbone of their midfield.
As reported by MARCA, Carlo Ancelotti told the press about midfielders coming through:
"“There are a lot of youngsters, like Enzo [Fernandez], and a lot of midfielders who are coming through, some of them Spanish.“Bellingham is one of them, but I’ll stick with my midfielders, who are very good, especially the youngsters, like Valverde, Camavinga and Tchouameni. We have a lot of young players.”"
Ancelotti hails Bellingham but sounds happy with his options at Real Madrid
Real Madrid have been linked with Bellingham heavily and are believed to be one of the leading candidates to sign him from Borussia Dortmund next summer.
Of course, one would not expect Ancelotti to give anything away at this stage. But it is clear that the Italian rates the Englishman highly, as any coach in world football would.
There could be two major stumbling blocks when it comes to any potential deal though. The first would be the transfer fee that Borussia Dortmund would want in order to let Bellingham leave, which could be as much as €150 million. And the second would be the competition for his signature, with Liverpool and Manchester City also believed to be interested.