England boss Gareth Southgate says it is “not a stupid question” to ask whether Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham is the best player in the world right now.
Having impressed at Birmingham and flourished at Borussia Dortmund, the 20-year-old midfielder has gone up another level since his big-money switch to Spain.
Bellingham has immediately established himself as one of Madrid’s main men and has scored 10 goals in 10 matches since moving to the Bernabeu for an initial £88.5million fee.
The midfielder scored a brace in Saturday’s 4-0 win against Osasuna, which will only increase talk of the midfielder being the world’s top player at the moment.
Asked if Bellingham was the best in the world right now, Southgate – speaking before the Real star’s two-goal showing on Saturday – said: “I wondered if you might say that!
“No, it’s not a stupid question. I haven’t seen everybody and studied everybody playing.
“All I can say is he’s at one of the biggest clubs in the world, arguably the biggest, and he’s playing exceptionally well and he’s currently the match-winner for them so he’s in a brilliant place.”
Bellingham has quickly established himself as a fan favourite at the Bernabeu, where he has added more goals to his game playing in a more advanced position.
The 20-year-old scored a solo stunner in Tuesday’s 3-2 Champions League win at Napoli, with Spanish media comparing him to Diego Maradona and Alfredo Di Stefano.
“He’s playing higher,” Southgate said. “We played him higher against Scotland, he had that freedom in the Ukraine game as well, we didn’t use the game well enough in the final third.
“But he’s always looked dangerous and had an impact around the opposing box with Dortmund and with us, without looking quite as calm as he has this season in front of goal.
“It’s brilliant to have people who can win games.
“He’s been the match-winner for Real Madrid and the start for him has been absolutely phenomenal. I’m chuffed to bits for him.”
Asked if Bellingham is a number 10 who could play up top on his own without a number nine, the England boss said: “Well, there are lots of different number 10s, aren’t there?
“The 10s I played against, (Dennis) Bergkamp, (Gianfranco) Zola probably were forwards that dropped deeper rather than the other way round.
“Jude is a more powerful player than those, slightly different. More of a midfield player, who’s going to make midfield runs. That doesn’t mean he’s any less effective, as we’ve seen.
“Their team have found a nice balance with the athletic midfield they have behind and, having lost (Karim) Benzema as they did and lost Vinicius (to injury) as they did, they have been adapting.
“He’s been defending on the left wing in a couple of games and I can just imagine the reaction from all and sundry if I asked him to do that!
“So, look, he’s doing brilliantly well and that’s the beauty of some of the options we’ve got. We can play players in different positions. They’re good players so they can adapt.”
Bellingham will now join up with England for a Wembley double-header, with Friday’s friendly against Australia followed by a Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy.
Southgate largely stuck with the tried and tested with his selection for October’s fixtures, meaning vice-captain Jordan Henderson kept his place after his controversial move to Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia.
“His physical data is fine,” Southgate said of the former Liverpool skipper. “The games are not at the same intensity as the games here. The heat is part of that.
“There are two or three drinks breaks per game, which is an indication of the climate, and that his having an impact on how teams play.
“It is a situation that we are tracking closely. I will go out and watch games. But we get all his games the same way we get everybody else’s.
“That’s a longer trip and in these first couple of months we’ve felt it more important to see as many games live as we can, as quickly as possible, by getting around our country more.
“But as time moves on, we’ll get to more of the Milans, the Madrids and the Bayern Munichs, as well as out to see Hendo.”
LaLiga runners-up finish very difficult for Girona, boss Michel says
Michel knows it will not be easy for Girona to secure a second-place finish in LaLiga after they slipped to a 1-0 home loss to Villarreal on Tuesday.
But the players will give their all to try and finish an impressive season on a high, the coach vowed.
After losing at home to Villarreal, Girona are third on 75 points, one behind Barcelona, who have a game in hand.
"I see it as very difficult," Michel told reporters. "Barca are already in second place with two wins and can win all three games. It's a very complicated situation for second place.
"I see everyone in the team really fired up. These players just have to be applauded for the season they are having.
"After winning against Barcelona we had two games we could have won and we only got one point."
Girona visit Valencia, ninth in the league, on Sunday. They conclude their campaign at home against lowly-ranked Granada on May 25. Barca's remaining league fixtures include Almeria, Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla.
Michel was nevertheless proud of his team and the fans despite the disappointing result.
"They [the fans] have shown us that they are with the team, that they are happy with the way we do things. They know that together we are much stronger. I am very proud of the fans," the Spaniard said.
With their best finish of 10th coming in the 2017-18 and 2022-23 campaigns, Girona's place in next season's Champions League is in doubt.
According to The Times, Premier League reigning champions Manchester City and their sister club Girona will not both be able to compete in the tournament unless Abu Dhabi's City Football Group, who acquired 47 per cent of the LaLiga club in 2017, reduce their shareholding in one of the teams.
Kroos for the Ballon d'Or? Why not, says Ancelotti
Carlo Ancelotti has backed Toni Kroos for this year's Ballon d'Or if Real Madrid and Germany win the Champions League and Euro 2024 respectively.
With another LaLiga title under their belts, Madrid are into the Champions League final after they overcame Kroos' former club Bayern Munich in the last four.
Borussia Dortmund stand in Los Blancos' way of a record-extending 15th European crown.
And Kroos, who has come out of international retirement in order to boost Germany's Euro 2024 chances, has played a key role in Madrid's success this term.
In fact, he has been so good, that Ancelotti cannot see why the Ballon d'Or would not be a possibility.
"The Ballon d'Or for Kroos? Well, anything can happen," Ancelotti told reporters after Madrid hammered Alaves 5-0 on Tuesday.
"If he wins the Champions League and the Euro. I think he can do a double. Germany can win with Kroos."
Kroos has played 46 times in all competitions for Madrid this season, with only Joselu, Rodrygo and Federico Valverde making more appearances.
The 34-year-old leads Madrid's squad for chances created (85), while he is second for assists (nine) and expected assists (7.6).
He has attempted 3,257 passes, over 500 more than any of his club-mates, completing 3,083 of them (94.6 per cent).
However, his immediate future is not yet certain, though Ancelotti is not concerned.
"At the moment, we are not worried about what he is going to do, neither am I, nor the club, nor Toni," the Italian added.
"Until June 1, this is a secondary issue. We are now thinking about winning the Champions League."
Madrid now want to make the most of their remaining LaLiga games as they prepare for their showdown with BVB.
"These games are important to maintain the rhythm, the good dynamics, the motivation and the good play. There are two weeks left. Now we'll rest for a few days and next week we'll do some physical work. In the second week we will do tactical work," Ancelotti said.
"For me as a coach, it's the best season. The team has been fantastic, we deservedly won LaLiga. We're on a cloud, but we have to keep going because we haven't played the most important game yet.
"This team has a lot of talent. Very young people with a lot of quality. It has the opportunity to mark an era in the future, given the value of the youngsters we have."
Girona 0-1 Villarreal: Traore strike lifts Yellow Submarine
Bertrand Traore's goal gave Villarreal a 1-0 win at Girona on Tuesday that prevented the hosts from reclaiming second spot in LaLiga.
Girona, who have enjoyed a superb campaign, are third with 75 points, trailing Barcelona, who moved a point clear with a 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad on Monday.
Alexander Sorloth and Goncalo Guedes went close for Villarreal in the first half, but Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga was in fine form.
Traore broke the deadlock in the 59th minute after latching on to a superb pass from Guedes, however.
Viktor Tsyhankov, Savio and Artem Dovbyk all went close for Girona, but could not find the back of Filip Jorgensen's net.
Villarreal were reduced to 10 men in the 95th minute after Kiko Femenia was sent off for a second yellow card after a push on Aleix Garcia.
Data Debrief: Rare home loss for Girona
Girona have suffered only their second defeat at Montilivi in LaLiga this season, following a 0-3 loss to Real Madrid in September.
The home side attempted 749 passes in this game, their highest total in a single match in LaLiga this season.
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