Bellingham Emerging as England’s World Cup Talisman
Jude Bellingham has long divided opinion, but four goals in five games at World Cup 2026 are making it increasingly difficult to argue with his importance to England. A lengthy profile published by The Guardian takes a close look at how the 23-year-old has developed — and why some earlier criticism of his character may have been wide of the mark.
The piece draws comparisons to a raft of English football legends, suggesting Bellingham blends Wayne Rooney’s explosiveness, Paul Scholes’s vision, and the rampaging energy of Steven Gerrard. But the writer is equally candid about the contradictions that have surrounded him. At Euro 2024, Bellingham was inconsistent and visibly frustrated at times, arguing with referees and occasionally appearing out of sync with teammates. His famous overhead kick against Slovakia came at the end of what was otherwise a difficult personal performance.
The Guardian’s writer admits to having misjudged him: for a period, there was concern that Bellingham’s ego might hold England back rather than propel them forward. Thomas Tuchel’s much-discussed use of the word “repulsive” about the player added fuel to that narrative, though Bellingham was only 20 at the start of Euro 2024 — barely more than a teenager carrying enormous expectations.
That context matters. Real Madrid’s Champions League winner has spent most of his career outside England and has kept considerable distance from the British written press, which has perhaps made him seem harder to read. The Guardian profile suggests this unknowability was mistaken for arrogance when, by multiple accounts from people outside the game, he is well regarded at a personal level.
The comparison the writer reaches for is Novak Djokovic — a competitor who can charm a crowd one moment and turn into something fearsome and single-minded the next. It is an apt one. When England went a goal down to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the last 32, Bellingham visibly struggled to stay composed. That intensity, the piece argues, is not a character flaw — it is precisely what makes him different.
For UK bettors tracking England’s progress, Bellingham’s form is clearly the thread that runs through the team’s best moments at this tournament. You can follow all the latest results and live standings as England push further into the competition.
With post-retirement ambitions apparently including a shot at playing James Bond, Bellingham is nothing if not confident in his own story. Right now, on the pitch at least, that confidence looks fully justified.