Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand declared "we haven't seen" a player like Jude Bellingham at his age after the Borussia Dortmund teenager helped guide his team to a 4-1 Champions League win at Sevilla.
Bellingham scored one and assisted one as Dortmund eased to victory in Spain on Wednesday, with other goals coming from Raphael Guerreiro, Karim Adeyemi and Julian Brandt, while Youssef En-Nesyri pulled one back for the hosts.
Bellingham, 19, who captained the Bundesliga side, became just the second teenager to score in the first three games of a Champions League campaign.
The only other player to achieve that feat is his former BVB team-mate Erling Haaland, who did so with Salzburg in the 2019-20 season.
Bellingham's tally of three Champions League goals this season is already a joint-high among English teenagers for a single campaign, along with Manchester United's Wayne Rooney, back in 2004-05.
"What he's doing in his position at his age, we haven't seen," Ferdinand said, working as a pundit for BT Sport.
"The best of our generation, [Frank] Lampard, [Steven] Gerrard, [Paul] Scholes, [Patrick] Vieira, Roy Keane, they weren't doing this.
"He's still got to go on and prove it over a long period of time, but they weren't doing what he is doing right now [at the same age].
"Influencing games at this level, captaining teams at this level, and mentally this kid's a beast."
Fellow pundit and former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole added: "Along with Erling Haaland, he's the best young player in the world, that's for sure.
"I watched him play for England over the two [Nations League] games [against Italy and Germany] and he was our best player.
"His dad I believe was a semi-pro footballer so he's obviously been guided right... When we grew up with Frank [Lampard] and his dad was a footballer obviously, a top footballer, and Frank had this maturity about him... Bellingham's got that as well, coupled with his undoubted God-given talent and his drive, he's unstoppable."
Bellingham has long been linked with a move back to England, having joined Dortmund from Birmingham City in 2020, with Liverpool, Manchester City, United and Chelsea all reportedly keeping an eye on developments, along with LaLiga giants Real Madrid.
"One thing that's for sure – whoever gets him – is [his] temperament," Ferdinand said.
"When you're making big transfers and big moves like that in the spotlight, temperament is a key element you need to get right. This kid has already proved that it isn't a question mark."
Foden matches Messi and Haaland feat with 50th league goal under Guardiola
Phil Foden equalled the feats of Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland when he scored his 50th league goal as Manchester City stormed into a 3-0 lead against Brighton.
Foden scored twice in the first half at the Amex Stadium on Thursday, setting Pep Guardiola's team on the way to a potentially pivotal win in the Premier League title race.
The England international's first, which came after Kevin De Bruyne's excellent diving header, came as his free-kick deflected in off the unfortunate Pascal Gross.
It was that goal that marked Foden's 50th in league football, with all of those coming under Guardiola.
That makes Foden just the third player to score 50 league goals under Guardiola while aged 23 or younger, after City team-mate Haaland and Barcelona great Messi.
Foden netted his 51st Premier League goal soon after, drilling in after City capitalised on some slack Brighton play.
Borussia Dortmund gearing up for crucial clashes against RB Leipzig and PSG
Borussia Dortmund are bracing for their two most important matches of the season.
Saturday's game at RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga is followed by a Champions League semi-final first leg at home to Paris-Saint Germain on May 1.
With the league title already wrapped up by runaway leaders Bayer Leverkusen, attention has shifted to the battle to qualify for the European competitions next season.
Dortmund's unexpected success in Europe has thrilled fans but the team's future in the continent's top club competition beyond this term could rest a lot on the result against Leipzig.
BVB are in fifth place on 57 points with Leipzig fourth on 59 and four games left in the campaign. The top four teams qualify for the Champions League group stage, although Germany is likely to earn a fifth spot as one of the top two in UEFA's coefficient table depending on the remaining results in European competition this season.
A Dortmund defeat against Leipzig would see them drift five points behind their rivals with three games remaining, so Edin Terzic's side are aiming to keep hot on their rivals' heels.
"It is a very important, decisive game against Leipzig," said Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck.
"They are our direct rivals and it is a big difference for us finishing fourth or fifth.
"We lost against them earlier in the season and now we want to win this. It is the fight for fourth place."
Dortmund conceded a last-gasp equaliser in last week's 1-1 draw against Leverkusen but have won five of their last seven league games, including a 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich.
"It is extremely important for us to keep trying with 100 per cent to get that fourth place," said goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
"We cannot sit back and relax until we have achieved that. We must maintain focus and step on the gas."
RB Leipzig chief determined to seal top-four Bundesliga finish
RB Leipzig are determined to wrap up a top-four Bundesliga finish, despite fifth spot possibly earning a place in next season's Champions League, the club's chief business officer said on Thursday.
Leipzig, who host Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, are fourth on 59 points, two ahead of Dortmund with four games left in the season. A win would put the Saxony club firmly in the driving seat for a top-four finish.
The top four qualify automatically for the Champions League group stage, although Germany is likely to earn a fifth spot as one of the top two in UEFA's coefficient table depending on the remaining results in European competition this season.
"That (potential fifth spot) involves a lot of data and statistics," said Leipzig CBO Johann Plenge in a media call. "We are not spending too much time on this discussion."
"This is not something we take too much into consideration. We have the ambition to be a top-four club and to be that you have to finish in at least fourth place," he said.
Leipzig, who will go on a U.S. tour from July 28-Aug. 4 and will play Aston Villa in New Jersey, also competed in the Champions League this season, losing to Real Madrid 2-1 on aggregate in the round of 16.
"The match (against Dortmund) is extremely important. We are very focused and 100% confident we will give everything on the pitch," Plenge said.
"I think we have a very good situation to finish the season as a top-four club."
Plenge said for the new season the club planned to hold on to their top performers, unlike last year when several key players, including Josko Gvardiol, Dominik Szoboszlai, Christopher Nkunku and Konrad Laimer, left, forcing a big overhaul.
"We had a very intense transfer period last summer. We developed some great players [for] the Premier League. We want a less intense transfer period and to keep the players together," Plenge said.
"Having them in our team next season is what we will do in the summer."
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