Six reasons for vilifying Jude Bellingham include brother beef, Saudi transfer and Euro ’24 red mist | OneFootball

Jude Bellingham celebrates scoring for Real Madrid.

Jude Bellingham is currently the darling of English football but history proves a star boy’s reputation can be dragged through the mud at what feels like the drop of a dime.

You only have to look back on the careers of David Beckham and Wayne Rooney to discover how quickly the public’s perception of a supposed jewel of English football can dramatically change.

Bellingham is an extraordinary talent and due to his stable upbringing, he is mature beyond his years. It is mouthwatering that – even after his latest masterclass vs Italy – there *should* be a lot more to come from this freakish talent.

Yet some fans of the English national team do not act appropriately when nice things come their way and the media are quick to lambast our top talents as soon as they do the slightest thing wrong.

Bellingham‘s early career progression suggests he is better placed than most to deal with critics when they target him with a vengeance. But assuming the 19-year-old 20-year-old does become a ‘villain’ at some stage, why might that be? Here are some potential catalysts…

A tournament-defining own goal The Three Lions have booked their place at next year’s European Championships with relative ease and given the wide breadth of quality at Gareth Southgate’s disposal, it’s hardly a surprise that his team are heading into the tournament as one of the favourites to bring the trophy home.

*Another* semi-final (at least) is expected of England next summer. And while Southgate’s side are good enough to breeze past most teams, some tough tests will come if they are going to end 58 years of hurt and finally lift some silverware.

France should be England’s toughest opponent if they meet at Euro 2024 and the winning margin of this clash – if there is one before spot-kicks – will likely be a single goal. And if that’s to be the case, imagine the knock-out tie is settled by an own goal scored by (drum roll please…) Bellingham.

Most own goals come via a severe bout of bad luck and even if that’s the case in this scenario, it would not save Bellingham from ruthless tabloid writers who would lament his mistake for years to come.

Red mist moment = red card It would take considerably longer to forgive Bellingham if a red mist moment gets the better of him in a big England game.

Bellingham is a joy to watch and it’s great to see a footballer playing at the top of his game with a smile on his face, but he is a fierce competitor – like his predecessor Wayne Rooney – and he does not shy away from firm challengers when the time is right.

So in a tense moment during a semi-final/final with everything on the line, emotions can easily go into overdrive and result in a player producing a moment of madness that could turn a game’s momentum in favour of their opponent.

Whether it’s a headbutt or kick-out, huge clashes like these are defined by specific moments and should England’s Euro 2024 or 2026 World Cup hopes end due to Bellingham losing his head, he would certainly be put through the wringer and in the era of social media, it may be even worse for the Real Madrid newbie than it was for Beckham and Rooney.

We hope Bellingham would be wise enough to avoid falling victim to one of these scenarios, his youth is worth noting and – despite how perfect he seems to be – moments of weakness are understandable, even if they will never be swiftly forgiven.

MORE penalty shootout heartache While you have to look back further for examples of English players being slated over an own goal or a red card, the summer of 2021 – specifically the final of the delayed Euros at Wembley – is firmly fixed in the mind of scarred football supporters from these shores.

England’s track record with penalty shootouts is pretty awful on the whole and that summer’s tournament was joyous right up until the decisive spot-kicks, which led to Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka being subjected to sickening racial abuse over their missed attempts from 12 yards.

Bellingham’s recent form is already leading some folk to expect him to carry England to glory next summer. This is pretty unfair but to be expected as he is bloody good.

And even if he produces Player of the Tournament form, in the eyes of certain moronic England supporters, his good work will be undone if he misses a vital penalty that results in his side’s demise. Sad but true.

Brother beef Great football genes have been passed down by Mr and Mrs Bellingham. Jude is already firmly established as one of the world’s best midfielders, but his 18-year-old brother – Jobe – is also progressing nicely at Championship outfit Sunderland and if recent reports are to be believed, he’s on Real Madrid’s radar.

Jobe’s move to Real Madrid may be unlikely, but he *should* be in England’s gaze and eventually be an international regular alongside his talented older brother.

As lovely as this story would be, chaos is far more entertaining, so how about some Bellingham brother beef? Yes? I thought so.

How this could come about is anyone’s guess, but seeing as this is my article, I’ll give it a go. Maybe Jude grows jealous as Jobe emerges as his equal (or even superior) in a few years and plots an underhand tactic which would result in his little brother’s demise.

Bellingham’s loveable aura would immediately crumble as one of the main things he’ll be remembered for would be ambushing his brother’s blossoming career. The bad egg.

Losing his love for football A common trope in football is gifted players not reaching their full potential. This could be a result of being dealt a negative card with injuries or an unwillingness to work hard on the training pitch.

Ex-Man Utd starlet Ravel Morrison is often the go-to example for this, but former Chelsea sensation Eden Hazard recently prematurely retired following his nightmare spell at Real Madrid.

Securing a move to Los Blancos (or Barcelona) will be the peak of most players’ careers so you can understand why some lose motivation and decline once this feat is achieved.

Bellingham is showing no sign of plateauing following his dream move to the Bernabeu and it remains to be seen just how good the midfielder could turn out to be.

We’re in the thick of his brilliance at the moment so his potential feels endless and for England’s sake, it would be a huge shot in the arm for the team if it is.

But it would be naive to think Bellingham will never go through a rough patch and what if he simply ends up falling out of love with football?

Bellingham’s whole life has been centred around football. It is entirely conceivable that he could achieve all of his wildest sporting dreams before the age of 25 and should a form decline lead to him not realising other people’s almighty expectations, supporters would soon go off him and a story of ‘what could have been’ may leave a bitter taste in the mouth when reflecting on his career.

Joining Henderson and Co. in Saudi Jordan Henderson’s reputation of being one of football’s nice guys has been overshadowed by his money-orientated affiliation with the Saudi Pro League.

The ex-Liverpool captain was booed by his own fans during the international break and while Southgate continues to blindly stick by his man, supporters are growing sick of the midfielder’s nonsense.

Henderson is not the only player whose popularity has taken a hit this summer after they gleefully leapt over to the Middle East with their pockets brimmed with cash.

Ageing footballers (barring ‘LGBTQ+ activist’ Henderson) can be forgiven for securing the Saudi bag before calling it a day, but it is infuriating to see players in their prime – Ruben Neves and Aleksandar Mitrovic – follow suit rather than continuing to compete in major European leagues.

And there is not a more sure-fire way for Bellingham to become a ‘villain’ than to sign for a Saudi Pro League club.

From a selfish perspective, it would be a shame if Bellingham never stepped foot in the Premier League. But if staying at Real Madrid means his best days will not be spent in the Middle East, it’s an acceptable compromise.