Why Dortmund is the perfect destination for this Birmingham starlet

Jude Bellingham is perfect for Borussia Dortmund.

The 16-year old midfielder has been linked with Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund, however, the Bundesliga giants would be the best place for Bellingham given their history of developing young talent

With the transfer window slowly coming, many players around Europe will find themselves with new clubs in the fall. Despite the financial instability that most teams are facing due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, some of the continent’s brightest young talents could still be on the move. Dortmund star Jadon Sancho is still being chased by many top sides, most notably Manchester United.

However, Ed Woodward has made it clear that the Red Devils won’t have the money to be spending over 100 million euros on one player this summer. The young Englishmen is currently valued at close to 120 million.

It will be interesting to see if Sancho stays put with Lucien Favre’s squad, but nevertheless, Dortmund is looking to bolster their squad even more with a young midfielder who currently plays with Championship side, Birmingham City. Jude Bellingham is one of the top young midfielders available this summer, with United also looking to secure his signature.

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According to ESPN, Dortmund are on the verge of signing the 16-year old for a reported 20 million euros, but won’t be able to do so until he turns 17 next Monday. Bellingham previously went on a tour of United’s training ground before COVID-19 came along, however, he’s made the decision to choose BVB due to the first-team opportunities that await with the Bundesliga side.

Bellingham graduated from Birmingham’s academy last year, going on to make 33 appearances for the first team this term, bagging four goals and tallying three assists. He’s a very mature and strong player for his age, given the fact that he’s a regular in the starting eleven in a very physically demanding league like the Championship.

Following in Sancho’s footsteps

Whether Sancho stays in Dortmund or not, he’s one of the sole reasons that Bellingham has chosen the black and yellows. At 17, Sancho decided to leave Manchester City, where he was yet to even make a first-team appearance for Pep Guardiola. He joined Dortmund that year and became an immediate hit at Signal Iduna Park, having scored 30 goals in just 77 appearances with the club.

This season alone, the England international has scored 19 times and set up another 18 goals in just 39 appearances across all competitions, becoming arguably the most impactful player on Dortmund’s squad.

With Bellingham, he’s already got a full season of football under his belt at the first-team level. To be 16-years old and play basically every single match in one of England’s top divisions is impressive in itself. To see how Sancho has developed in Germany can only make the Birmingham City youngster believe that he can reach the same heights with Dortmund or even higher for that matter.

Bellingham is capable of playing anywhere in the midfield, using his high IQ for the game and creativity in the final third to create havoc amongst opposing backlines. He has all the traits necessary to excel in Germany, with tremendous speed and physical presence on the ball.

He’s no sluff in his own half either, showing impressive defensive abilities when it comes to making crucial tackles or running down opponents. No matter the circumstances, Bellingham is always one of the hardest-working players on the pitch.

It’s premature to say that Bellingham could end up being better than Sancho because he’s already had experience at one of the highest levels before moving to Dortmund. But, given his outstanding skill set, the youngster has a ton of potential that should fit in perfectly with a youthful attack at BVB alongside Erling Haaland, Gio Reyna, and possibly, Sancho as well next season.

United wasn’t the answer

It’s a well-known fact that young players simply don’t develop in the Premier League. First-team minutes are hard to come by in England’s top-flight which is one of the biggest reasons Sancho decided to leave a world-class squad in Man City.

Man United always try to chase the best talents around and they made it very clear that Bellingham was at the top of their wishlist this summer. 20 million for a teen is quite pricey but even given the current circumstances, the Red Devils wouldn’t have issue forking out the money for him.

In the end, it looks like Bellingham has made the right decision though. United already has a crowded midfield with many players all vying for minutes and the sad reality is that he wouldn’t have played a lot at Old Trafford.

Bellingham may not start immediately with Dortmund as he will need to prove himself in a new league, but I don’t see that being any problem for the teenager. To be this young and already have some of the best clubs in the world chasing your services only speaks to the enormous talent that Jude Bellingham is.

The sky is the limit for the soon-to-be Borussia Dortmund midfielder.