Is he the next world champion after Ronaldo and Messi? 21-year-old Bellingham scored a goal to save England
What is the best birthday gift that a football player can give himself? Of course, goals and victory. This past European Cup match day, England's new star Bellingham made himself very happy. He just celebrated his 21st birthday a day ago. In the 1/8 final against Slovakia, he completed a wonderful overhead kick in the 95th minute, which not only helped the team in distress to equalize the score, but also laid the foundation for England to reverse the opponent 2-1 in overtime and advance to the quarterfinals. The 21-year-old Bellingham proved with his actions that he is a player born for big occasions.
Bellingham's wonderful overhead kick saved England in the last 30 seconds.
It is hard to imagine that this is Bellingham's third major tournament. From the European Championship three years ago to the World Cup two years ago, and now to the European Championship, this young English player has grown from a marginal figure who feels the atmosphere of the competition to the core of the team. Last season in Real Madrid, Bellingham has already demonstrated his comprehensive passing, organization and finishing abilities. Judging from his performance throughout the season, "all-powerful" should be his most prominent label.
Because of Bellingham, even the harsh British media are very optimistic about the prospects of the England team in this tournament. Now that he has put on the No. 10 jersey, his tactical position is unquestionable. Since he can serve as the offensive core of Real Madrid, which is full of big-name stars, he also has such ability in the England team. But ideals are full, but reality is skinny. In the past three group matches, England's performance was far from the expectations of the outside world. Although Bellingham scored a goal in the first round, he did not perform very well in the next two games. He, like coach Southgate, is under a lot of pressure.
In the quarter-final against Slovakia, Bellingham, who started the match, knew that he had to stand out. Just when the team was on the verge of elimination, Bellingham scored a back-heel goal in the 95th minute, pulling England back, and then Kane's header in overtime reversed the situation. According to statistics, Bellingham, 21 years and 1 day old, became the youngest scorer for England in the knockout stage of the European Cup. At the same time, this was also his third goal for the Three Lions in the tournament, tying Lampard, Scholes and Beckham, three legendary English midfielders. Don't forget, he is still so young!
After scoring the goal, Bellingham celebrated wildly, and the English fans also went crazy with him. In an interview after the game, he regained his composure and said that he knew what he should and could do at that critical moment. "We were only 20 or 30 seconds away from being eliminated. My mood now is very different from that time. I know what I can do at that moment, because I did it for Real Madrid last season and for England before that. I am very happy to help the team." Bellingham said.
After the game, Bellingham was named the best player of the game.
The biggest beneficiary of Bellingham's goal may be England coach Southgate. Many fans and media believe that it was Southgate's improper command that made England so difficult in this game, and his team still did not show a clear offensive idea. Southgate also praised this "savior" after the game, "I have said many times that Bellingham is really incredible. I believe I know him better than others. He is really special. He can have such a big impact on the game at such a young age. Although sometimes he does things that children of this age do, he can change the game at a critical moment."
At the club, Bellingham also won the best player of the match honor many times by relying on his outstanding performances at critical moments.
However, "Nanmen" admitted that he had thought about replacing Bellingham. "With 15 minutes left, I wondered if he could run any longer. But then I thought about how stars like him and Kane could play a role at critical moments, so I insisted on not making a substitution."
On December 5 last year, Real Madrid midfielder Bellingham received the 2023 Golden Boy Award and the Internet Golden Boy Award. The player received 97% of the votes. The Golden Boy Award was founded by Turin Sports in 2003 to recognize young players with outstanding performance that year.
Bellingham joined Real Madrid from Dortmund in the summer window of the 2023 season for a transfer fee of 103 million euros. Bellingham played 42 games for Dortmund last season, contributing 14 goals and 6 assists; Bellingham played 45 games for Real Madrid, scored 24 goals and assisted 13 times, and staged many lore plays, including two lore wins against Barcelona in the league, a lore win against Getafe at home, and a lore win against Berlin United in the Champions League. At the European Cup, his performance in saving the England team earned him greater reputation. English fans are already looking forward to getting past the Swiss team in the next round, because they have Bellingham, who was born for big scenes. Bellingham's current transfer value to Germany is 150 million euros.
In another match played that day, Spain defeated Georgia 4-1 and advanced to the quarterfinals.
