Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham on Zinédine Zidane, settling in Spain and the UEFA Champions League
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
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"My dad always wore a Madrid [shirt] around the house with 'Zidane 5' on the back," says the midfielder who has inherited that famous number in style since arriving from Dortmund in the summer.
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Signed from Dortmund in the summer, Jude Bellingham is enjoying a sensational first season with Real Madrid, the 20-year-old emerging as a major goalscoring force as Carlo Ancelotti's side chase glory in the UEFA Champions League and La Liga.
Raised in England's West Midlands, the son of a football-playing policeman, Bellingham dazzled in the Bundesliga and is now doing likewise in the Spanish capital, where Brazil great Ronaldo recently compared him to one of his most illustrious Bernabéu team-mates. "You can see he wants to score goals all the time," said the retired forward. "He reminds me a little bit of Zinédine Zidane with his quality."
On his childhood impressions of Real Madrid
I think it was always the benchmark in football, really. I think it's somewhere that's the kind of level I always thought I wanted to get to – and that I could get to – but I didn't probably think it would happen so quickly. And, you know, now I'm here, I'm grateful every day that I get to come in and represent this club. Now, it feels like a massive part of my life. It feels like everything in my life.
My dad always wore a Madrid [shirt] around the house, with 'Zidane 5' on the back, which is funny because it's kind of gone full circle and he gifted it to me when I joined in the summer. I was like: "Who's this guy that you're always wearing on your shirt?" And he was like: "Well, when you're old enough, we'll get you onto YouTube." Now that I wear the No5, it's ended up being quite a significant story.
On settling in Spain
I think there are always things that are different and that you have to adapt to. But I think because I had played abroad before I came here, it made it quite easy. I kind of knew what to expect in terms of, "I know there's going to be a big culture shock, I know that the language is probably going to be difficult at first," and those kinds of things. So, I knew what to expect.
The way the people are with you [in Spain] is the best. They want to hold you and, when they see you in public, hug you and feel you close. I get a lot of kisses on the face when I go to coffee shops and stuff like that. People come over and they don't necessarily want a picture. Sometimes, they just want to chat to you about games and stuff like that, and certain goals. And, it's really nice, that kind of family feeling, if you like. Whereas, in England, I think it's a bit more intense in terms of when players go out and about. But, here, you're definitely made to feel loved.
On rubbing shoulders with the greats
I always find it fascinating when we're [sitting] around and we're eating dinner or we're having a coffee before training, or whatever, and they're talking about certain Champions League finals and I'm like: "I remember watching that one with my dad and my brother."
It's a bit of a full-circle moment: when you remember where you were to hearing them speak about it, to then hopefully planning to do it at some point in the future. It's the kind of experience and wisdom that's invaluable, really. You can't get it without playing here and getting close to those guys, so I'm so grateful to be given that opportunity.
On his Champions League ambitions
It would mean the world to me, [having] come here with all the pressure and the expectation, to leave at the end of the season, going on my holidays, with such an amazing trophy. Such an amazing season would be a great pleasure. It's not something I'm thinking about just yet. I'm more focused on getting through the games that we've got and seeing where it ends us up.
I always think about how nice it would be to lift those things together and reward everyone's hard work throughout the course of a season. I think, for me, that's the ultimate goal in football, that's what we're all aiming for. So, yeah, if we were talking a year from now, it'd be nice to have a Champions League [winners' medal] and then, hopefully, be heading into another semi-final.
