Jude Bellingham continues to shine at Borussia Dortmund, leading to growing speculation about him possibly returning to English football in a big-money transfer in the near future.
The England international is clearly one of the game’s biggest talents, and it was obvious from his days at Birmingham City that there was something very special about him, with big clubs tracking him at the time.
Bellingham became a regular in the Birmingham first-team when he was still only 16 years old, and it wasn’t too long before Dortmund snapped him up.
However, there was a lot of speculation about Manchester United at that time as well, so how close were the Red Devils to winning the race for his signature?
Writing in the latest edition of his exclusive CaughtOffside column, Fabrizio Romano insists it wasn’t as close as some reports have suggested.
. @StanCollymore on #LFC inconsistent form and threadbare midfield ??
"James Milner shouldn't be a key member of the team…" ?
"I'd have blown them [#BVB] out of the market for Jude Bellingham" ??????? pic.twitter.com/RO1XAIuJWM
— CaughtOffside (@caughtoffside) September 12, 2022
“Honestly, it was never close between Man United and Bellingham in the past,” the transfer news expert wrote.
“They were interested alongside many other clubs including Premier League sides and Juventus, but he only wanted Borussia Dortmund as the perfect step for his future – in my opinion, a very smart call.”
United fans would surely love to have Bellingham in their midfield, but it’s unlikely to be an easy deal to get done as one imagines a host of Europe’s top clubs will be pursuing the 19-year-old next summer.