On Friday, England’s fitness and medical staff confirmed what Jude Bellingham had already hinted at in the mixed zone at the Westfalenstadion when he thanked Ollie Watkins for the goal that prevented extra time. “I don’t know if I could have played another 30 minutes,” he admitted. Muscle fatigue meant Bellingham did not train with his teammates. He did train normally yesterday, but his performances, beyond the decisive goals against Serbia and Slovakia, have revealed a heavy player lacking spark. Bellingham (581) is one of the five England players (Rice, Pickford, Stones, Walker add up to 600) who have played the most minutes in the tournament due to the two extra times they have had to play. Bellingham is also among the players who have run the most kilometres (65.4) in this Euro.
His weight in England’s game has been decreasing since the last 16 match against Slovakia. After that match in which he saved England from disaster with his spectacular overhead kick, Bellingham has disappeared. In the last two days Gareth Southgate has been very close to the Madrid player. His consultations with the physical trainers have been reiterated. The attacking plan that the English coach has designed depends on Bellingham a lot. If he believes that he has recovered well, he will try to make him play behind Kane; if he does not see that he is fine, he will place him more on the left. This happened in the semi-final against the Netherlands and Bellingham was not very happy. Southgate’s decision to give Foden more prominence resulted in the Madrid player’s least active performance so far in the tournament. Southgate had to choose between Foden and him and opted to hand over the offensive play to the City player. That Foden should carry the weight of the attacking play was one of the demands that the English media most insisted on.
Bellingham’s role has become less important as the tournament has progressed. In the opening game against Serbia and in the match against Denmark, we saw a player who aspired to be England’s all-rounder. He appeared in all areas of the pitch. He would position himself with Rice to start the game or move to the inside areas where he would clash with Foden to try to set up play. The decrease in the volume of play is reflected in his statistics. If at Madrid he averages 2.25 shots per game, at the Euros he does not reach one (0.83). At his club he has 1.75 chances created per game and in these six games with England he averages 0.67.
Bellingham is not feeling at ease at this European Championship, in which he started by scoring the winning goal against Serbia (1-0). The English press has suggested to Southgate that he should either drop him back to play in the double pivot with Rice, or play him as a second striker. There have even been analysts who have backed him. Until now, the English coach has always lined him up closer to the area. What does not occur to Southgate is to leave him out of the starting eleven.
Tonight’s final is Bellingham’s big chance to try and take the Ballon d’Or, after his great competitor, teammate Vinicius, fell in the quarterfinals of the Copa America. Where Bellingham was not listed, according to sources close to the organization, is on the list of the best players in the tournament. That too can be avoided with a good performance tonight.
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