Revealed: How Jude Bellingham will be affected by Toni Kroos’ Real Madrid departure | OneFootball

One of the many people to have been left disappointed with Toni Kroos’ decision to retire from football after this summer’s European Championship is Carlo Ancelotti, his manager at Real Madrid. The Italian desperately tried to convince Kroos to sign on for another season, but to no avail.

Ancelotti still counted on Kroos to be a starter next season, but with his departure, a plan has already been drawn up to “replace” the German maestro. As per Marca, the idea is for Jude Bellingham to take up the role vacated by Kroos, meaning that he will play significantly deeper that he has done so this season.

If Ancelotti sticks with the 4-4-2/4-1-2-1-2 hybrid system, Bellingham would likely play alongside Aurelien Tchouameni or Eduardo Camavinga in the centre of midfield, which would allow a certain Kylian Mbappe to come into the team alongside Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes in attack.

Bellingham may not have the goalscoring impact as he has done so in his debut season, but he will still play a huge role for Real Madrid going forward. However, he will have massive shoes to fill, as not many can stand up to Kroos’ quality as a controller.