Jude Bellingham, the 19-year-old midfielder for Borussia Dortmund and England, is a hot commodity in the transfer market. Manchester City and Liverpool are now joint favorites to sign him this summer, according to talkSPORT BET, with both teams priced at 2/1.
Bellingham joined Borussia Dortmund from Birmingham City in the summer of 2020 for around £25 million, less than a month after his 17th birthday. Despite his young age, he quickly became a fixture of the first team squad and one of the first names on the team sheet. He has already won 22 caps for England despite still being in his teens and has caught the attention of the world’s biggest clubs.
Liverpool was initially thought to be the standout choice for Bellingham, but their disappointing season so far, which may end without a top-four finish, could prove costly in their bid for the midfielder. It is unlikely that Bellingham would choose to join a team outside the Champions League, which has led Manchester City to join Liverpool as 2/1 favorites.
City has one of the best and deepest pools of midfielders in the world, but with Pep Guardiola’s side currently off the pace in the Premier League title chase and facing a challenging route to Champions League glory, additions may still have to be made. German stalwart Ilkay Gundogan has just a couple of months remaining on his contract, and should the 32-year-old leave, Bellingham could be the perfect like-for-like replacement.
Both players have the ability to play either in a holding role or in a more attacking position, as well as playing box-to-box. With Bellingham 12 years Gundogan’s junior, signing the young Englishman could be a great investment for the future.
Liverpool has long been linked with Bellingham, and they have always been seen as favorites to be the team to pry him from the Bundesliga for the last few seasons. Current Reds boss Jurgen Klopp previously led Borussia Dortmund to back-to-back Bundesliga titles and the Champions League final while in charge of the Schwarzgelben.
English teams have won two of the last seven Champions League titles, though Real Madrid has won four in that time and is showing no signs of their dominance ending. The reigning champions defeated PSG, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Liverpool en route to winning their 14th title last season and swept aside the Reds in the last 16 of this season’s competition. They have now been drawn against Chelsea yet again in the quarter-finals.
Real Madrid has fought their case from being an unlikely destination to now being among the favorites, slightly behind Liverpool and Manchester City at 3/1. Los Blancos’ midfield trio of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, and Casemiro won the club five Champions League titles in the last nine years, but the latter left in the summer for Manchester United, and the other two are now well into their 30s and have contracts expiring this summer.
The changing of the guard in the center of Real Madrid’s midfield has already started with the likes of Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga, and Aurelien Tchouameni already in the squad. And it seems Carlo Ancelotti could be in the market to add yet more firepower to a midfield that, especially with the addition of Bellingham, could well dominate European football for a decade to come.
Manchester United are outside bets at 14/1, with the same odds as a potential move to France and Italy.
It is important to gamble responsibly. A responsible gambler establishes time and monetary limits before playing, only gambles with money they can afford to lose, never chases their losses, and doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry, or depressed. For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to www.gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.