Guardiola lauds ‘special’ Bellingham

Pep Guardiola has lauded Jude Bellingham as a ‘special’ talent and believes the midfielder chose the perfect place to develop at Borussia Dortmund.

Manchester City travel to face Dortmund in the Champions League this evening and will again face off against one of England’s brightest young talents in Bellingham.

 

The teenager has scored against City in each of his last two meetings with the Premier League side and has continued to go from strength to strength in German football.

The 19-year-old has established himself as a senior England international since signing for Dortmund in 2020, where has since made 107 appearances in all competitions and has captained the club on occasion this season.

City are among the clubs who have been linked with signing Bellingham – who has scored in four consecutive Champions League fixtures this season – and Guardiola has praised the midfielder ahead of this evening’s fixture.

Guardiola believes Bellingham has the ‘whole package’ and insists the move to Dortmund was the right one for the teenager’s development.

“Borussia Dortmund is the perfect place for young talent to come,” he said at his pre-match press conference.

“Maybe if Jude Bellingham was in England he would go to City, United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal or Tottenham, maybe he would not get the minutes. The best thing for a young player to be better is to play minutes.

“He was 17 when he arrived but it was not just about his quality, how he was leading, his kicking, going to the referee. This guy was something special in terms of his mentality. Now he is 19 and he is already one of the captains. The quality, everybody knows it. The whole package is really good.”

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