Jude Bellingham was the most important player on Real Madrid when he first arrived to the Santiago Bernabeu during the summer 2023 transfer window for 100 million euros from German giants Borussia Dortmund, and that transfer fee now belongs on the list of blockbuster bargains with the likes of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale, and Cristiano Ronaldo in the modern history of the Merengues.
Through the first three games of the 2026/27 La Liga season in his new life under Jose Mourinho, Jude has been the best player on the team, and even in games in which Kylian Mbappe scores a hat trick, the England international is widely viewed by the Madridista faithful as the top dog in the starting lineup.
Where Mourinho has emphatically succeeded in getting the most out of a player he used to repeatedly fawn over back when he was working as an analyst is making sure to utilize Bellingham as a primary No. 10, starting him in an anti playmaker role so that Jude can press, carry the ball, defend, but still get close to the goal and score. After all, he nearly won the Pichichi in 2023/24 as a No. 10. And most importantly, he and Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League - a feat they have not won since.
Xabi Alonso had turned Jude Bellingham into a defender
As Jose Mourinho addressed to the press, Real Madrid got it totally wrong as a club in the 2025/26 La Liga and Champions League seasons with Jude Bellingham, with Mourinho reminding everyone that the club was playing him as a left back against Benfica, which is just embarrassing.
Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa did not do the best job with Bellingham, but it was obvious why Jude did not like Xabi Alonso, because the arrogant former midfielder was beyond horrendous at utilizing his best players, with Jude being the most egregious example of terrible tactical management.
Alonso was a tyrant with no track record at the Champions League level, telling titans of the competition to play defensive and to this liking. He totally neutered Bellingham, taking him away from the goal and turning him into a scrap like he were Matteo Guendouzi or Franck Kessie instead of literally the best midfielder on the planet.
Mourinho has immediately rectified all that. Real Madrid are being built around the superstars again, and that starts with Mr. Jude Bellingham getting to play near the goal, play freely, and actually change games offensively for this team.
Add us as a preferred source on Google