Former Real Madrid Center Back Jesus Vallejo says he was being blown away by what Jude Bellingham said to him after the midfielder arrived in the club in England in 2023
Jude Bellingham can divide the opinion in some quarters, but not in real Madrid. From the moment he arrived, he made a strong impression – not only on the hierarchy of the club, but during the team.
After his £ 88 million move to the Bernabeu in 2023, the English International was asked which shirt number he wanted. He chose No. 5, famous supported by the legendary midfielder Zinedine Zidane. There was only one problem: it was already taken.
Fortunately, Jesus Vallejo – who had inherited the number of Raphael Varane two years earlier – was more than willing to transfer it. It was a small gesture, especially from a player who got limited minutes on the field, but Bellingham was nevertheless grateful and moved Vallejo with his response.
“I remember that they had signed Jude and the club told me that Jude de Nr. 5 liked Zidane,” said Vallejo, 28, said Athletics. “I didn’t need anything else, I told them that I would be happy to give him no. 5.
“A minute later, Jude sent me a long message in English that was very emotional. Then, during the preseason, he thanked me a lot.
“He is a man who looks much older than he is. He has a very good mentality, I was very happy to give him the song before I met him and even more after I met him.”
Despite his popularity in Spain, Bellingham has criticized for his behavior against competition officials in recent months. Some observers now see him as a petulant – including the mother of England manager Thomas Tuchel, who went so far to describe his temperament as “repulsive”.
Yet the maturity of Bellingham did not go unnoticed in Madrid. It is clear that the club sees him as a future captain material, and sincere messages such as the person he sent to Vallejo, did not hurt his chances.
Although he arrived in Real Madrid in 2015 for £ 4.3 million as one of the biggest prospects of Spain, Vallejo never succeeded in setting up in the Spanish capital. In 10 years at the club, the defender only published 35 performances and he published most of his term of office on loan, including a short, seven-game Stint at Wolves during the 2019/20 season.
Now, on 28, he will try to launch his career at Albacete again in the Spanish Second Division. In the meantime, Bellingham has had a completely different process.
He hit the ground in Madrid and scored 23 goals in all competitions in his debut season, including 14 in his first 15 games. By doing this, he broke the record that was previously shared by Cristiano Ronaldo and Alfredo di Stefano, who each scored 13 times in their opening of 15 performances for Los Blancos.
The midfielder closed the season by being crowned the best player in Spain after he helped Real Madrid to La Liga and Champions League Glory. Last season, success in the field was more difficult to find, especially since Real was headed by Barcelona in the race for the La Liga title.
Nevertheless, Bellingham delivered a strong individual performance and ended the season with 15 goals. Nowadays he is generally considered one of the greatest talents – and the most recognizable names – in world football, and the number 5 shirt, once synonymous with Zidane, now feels unmistakably his.
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