There are certain players who feel inevitable. From the moment you first watch them glide across a pitch, you just know they’re different. Jude Bellingham has been that player since he was barely old enough to drive. At 20 years old, he’s already a central figure for Real Madrid and England, two of the most pressurised stages in world football, and he wears the responsibility as if he’s been doing it for a decade.

From Birmingham to the Bernabéu

Bellingham’s story is already the stuff of football folklore. Born in Stourbridge, he joined Birmingham City as a seven-year-old and became their youngest-ever first-team player at just 16. His maturity and decision-making were so far beyond his years that the club retired his No.22 shirt after he left, an almost absurd gesture for a teenager, but one that made complete sense to anyone who’d seen him play.

Instead of chasing a Premier League move, Bellingham took the brave path to Borussia Dortmund in 2020. The Bundesliga has long been a finishing school for England’s brightest talents, but Bellingham didn’t just learn, he dominated. By 18, he was captaining Dortmund in the Champions League, mixing poise and aggression in midfield battles against some of Europe’s best.

That fearlessness made him irresistible to Real Madrid. In the summer of 2023, Los Blancos won the race for his signature, and the €103 million fee now looks like a bargain.

A Galáctico in all but name

Madrid is a graveyard for many big reputations, but Bellingham has made it feel like home. Deployed as an advanced midfielder, he has added a lethal scoring touch to his game, regularly arriving late into the box with the instincts of a seasoned striker. The iconic white shirt can weigh heavy, but he wears it lightly, scoring in Clásicos, dragging Madrid through tight games, and playing with a swagger that recalls a young Zinedine Zidane.

Carlo Ancelotti calls him “complete,” and it’s hard to argue. Bellingham is strong in the tackle, silky in possession, tactically intelligent, and relentlessly driven. He can dictate tempo, break lines with a driving run, or finish moves himself. There are no obvious weaknesses, only layers of brilliance still being revealed.

England’s heartbeat for a generation

For Gareth Southgate, Bellingham is more than just another name on the team sheet; he’s the player England have been waiting for. At Euro 2020 he was a promising cameo. At the 2022 World Cup he was a revelation. And now, heading into future tournaments, he looks like the man around whom the next decade of England football will revolve.

He brings a rare mix of technical craft and competitive fire that England midfields of the past often lacked. With Declan Rice providing balance and a host of attacking talent around him, Bellingham is the bridge between industry and invention, the player who can turn a tight knockout tie with a single surge or perfectly weighted pass.

The road ahead

It’s frightening to think that Bellingham is still only scratching the surface. He’s 20 years old, already among the world’s best midfielders, and still learning the finer details of his craft. With his mentality, the sky isn’t even the limit. Multiple Champions League titles? A Ballon d’Or? Captaining England to a first major trophy since 1966? None of it feels unrealistic.

Football is rarely predictable, but some careers carry a sense of destiny. Jude Bellingham’s rise from Birmingham’s academy pitches to the Bernabéu lights feels like the beginning of a story that could define an era. For England and Real Madrid, the next ten years could belong to him, and for the rest of us, it’s a privilege just to watch it unfold.