The supposed savior came late. It was only last Sunday that Jude Bellingham, by far the most successful English footballer of the past season, joined his national team. And the 20-year-old midfielder had barely arrived at St. George’s Park north of Birmingham, the English national team’s preparatory base, when he had to pack his bags again. On Monday, the entourage set off for Germany to tackle the European Championship. It almost seemed as if everyone had been waiting for Bellingham, who had been granted a week’s special leave because of the Champions League final.
That’s not entirely wrong. Bellingham is set to play a key role in the English team’s attempt to finally live up to their role as favorites. The hopes of the “Three Lions,” who will play their first game in Gelsenkirchen against Serbia on Sunday evening (9 p.m., ZDF and Magenta TV and in the WELT sports ticker), are naturally resting on striker Harry Kane, but above all on the man from Real Madrid.
Bellingham scored 23 goals in his first season for the Whites. He won the league and the most important European Cup, was named the best player in the Primera Division and is now tasked with ensuring that England wins its first major title in 58 years, since winning the 1966 World Cup. That is the aim.
The expectations are immense. The prevailing opinion in the motherland of football is clear: either England will come home with the cup – or the team, including their coach Gareth Southgate, will be considered a complete failure.
The past few days have provided a foretaste of how little patience the English public is prepared to show. The dress rehearsal was botched on Friday a week ago. At Wembley, they lost 0:1 to Iceland – still without Bellingham. The Sun then conjured up “the return of the Ice Age” – in reference to the round of 16 exit at the 2016 European Championships, when they suffered one of the bitterest defeats in recent English sporting history against the supposed football dwarf. The friendly was “a humiliation” that made the title hopes “ridiculous”, wrote the tabloid.
For Southgate, this was the worst thing that could have happened – not necessarily in terms of sport, but in terms of atmosphere. From then on, it was clear that the feverish impatience would only increase. The 53-year-old tried to put the weak, at times despondent performance into perspective. The defeat could also have certain positive effects, he explained. It was also a reminder to “sharpen our focus now and ask ourselves whether everyone has already developed the mentality for what we are planning.” There is no reason to panic, was his message.
Southgate knows that he and his future will be at stake in Germany. He has no illusions about that. “If we don’t win, I probably won’t be here anymore. Then it might have been the last chance,” he explained in an interview with “Sport Bild”.
The former central defender, who has already coached England at the 2018 World Cup, the 2021 European Championship and the 2022 World Cup, knows that this European Championship will be the verdict on his time – and that if he doesn’t make it big, it will be devastating. Because then hardly anyone would remember that his almost eight years weren’t all that bad: that he reached the semi-finals in 2018 and even made it to the final in 2021. Southgate’s contract expires at the end of the year. The clock is ticking for the team manager, who has managed to stay in the job much longer than his twelve predecessors.
But Gareth Southgate doesn’t just want to surpass the tenure of Bobby Robson, the former England manager who served a full eight years between 1982 and 1990. He wants to be mentioned in the same breath as Alf Ramsey, the legendary coach who led the team to the 1966 World Cup title.
He is prepared to put up with a lot for that. Southgate made tough decisions which only served to increase the number of his critics. He left out the injured central defender Harry Maguire from Manchester United from the provisional squad; a player with whom he always had a particularly close relationship. Maguire would probably not have made it to the start of the tournament in time due to a long-term calf injury. At the same time, Southgate sent Jack Grealish from Manchester City and James Maddison from Tottenham Hotspur home. In doing so, he sacrificed two creative players. The omission of Grealish in particular brought him criticism. “We simply had the feeling that other players had had a stronger season, especially in the last six months,” said the coach. In fact, Grealish in particular had often only played a supporting role at the club recently.
Southgate is placing even greater emphasis on the current form of the players in this tournament. This could also be reflected in the starting eleven on Sunday. Surprises are possible, but it certainly doesn’t seem as though the coach already has his starting lineup in mind.
John Stones, who will inevitably take on the role of defensive leader after Maguire’s departure, was substituted against Iceland with ankle problems. It remains to be seen who will play alongside the established Declan Rice in defensive midfield. Kobbie Mainoo, the 19-year-old talent from Manchester United, would be an option – as would Adam Wharton from Crystal Palace, who is only a year older. Even a transfer of right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool FC to the centre is conceivable.
There are also question marks in the offensive, the strongest part of the team. Phil Foden was allowed to play in the central offensive position against Iceland – but he will have to vacate it at the European Championships. Because that is reserved for Bellingham. He will, that is certain, be the playmaker: he will play the central role in the 4-2-3-1 system, initiating and coordinating attacks. Bellingham – similar to Real Madrid – will distribute the ball, look for one-twos with striker Harry Kane or take the shot himself. But above all he will lead the way.
In his most important and perhaps last assignment as England manager, Southgate has given Bellingham the role of boss – which comes with great responsibility. “I’m sure he can give this team a boost and handle the pressure that comes with it. But we’re not going to put everything on Jude, we have a lot of good players,” explained the coach.
It is also the experiences that Southgate has had to make at previous tournaments that have prompted him to rely primarily on Bellingham at this European Championship. In 2018, England failed in the 1-2 semi-final defeat against Croatia because their own self-confidence suddenly evaporated. In the 2021 European Championship final against Italy, the “Three Lions” lost their nerve in the penalty shootout. And in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup, when they lost 1-2 to France, the much better English team failed to win. Even the experienced Kane failed to keep a cool head – he shot the penalty that could have made it 2-2 into the night sky over Qatar.
At least during Southgate’s time, it was never a lack of play that prevented the team from making a big impact. Against this backdrop, it may seem risky that Bellingham of all people should take the lead this time. The former Dortmund player will only be 21 during the European Championship.
But there is no more mature, no more fearless player in the Three Lions. “His will to never lose is unique,” said Southgate. Even if everyone around him loses their nerve, Bellingham remains clear and determined. England may indeed have many good players, but only one who is as mentally robust as Bellingham.
