In the city of “Hey Jude”, Bellingham failed to take a sad song and make it better for Real Madrid. Real fans draped club scarves around the statues of the four Beatles by the Mersey but didn’t even get that close to Liverpool icons at Anfield. Bellingham tried hard.
Real Madrid’s towering attacking midfielder is one of the most gifted footballers that English football has produced in the last 30 years. He’s tall and powerful, strong technically and mentally, yet he divides opinion. Any fair assessment of Bellingham’s performance would acknowledge his mistakes that led to Liverpool’s goal but balance that by reflecting that he created Real’s best chance and how hard he worked for the team, in and out of possession.
Often with coverage of Bellingham, you can’t see the truth for the taunts. Online critics were scathing about his contribution against Liverpool, flinging all manner of unflattering takes from “over-hyped” to “massively over-rated” that swamped more measured appraisals such as “covered most ground for Madrid. Can’t do it on his own.”
Social media verdicts are often shaped by tribalism, and the youthful symbol of Real’s ambition falls victim to this. Some Barcelona fans were apoplectic at Bellingham’s inclusion ahead of their beloved Pedri and Raphinha in the FIFPRO Men’s World XI announced on Monday. The all-star team was voted by 20,000 professionals from 68 countries, “those who compete at the highest level and know best who truly excelled,” according to FIFPRO, the global players’ union which represents them.
Even long-term admirers saw little truly exceptional in Bellingham’s work from Jul. 15, 2024, the day after he was in the European Championship final, to Aug. 3, 2025, beyond his contribution to England regaining their elite Nations League status (which brought him the England fans’ vote as their Player of the Year) and a prolific December for Real.
