Jude Bellingham left Birmingham City this summer after a long saga surrounding his future. The young midfielder had been attracting interest from several Premier League clubs, with Manchester United repeatedly credited with an interest.
For months, Borussia Dortmund were pushed out in front as the likeliest destination and the only doubts were around what the Bundesliga club would pay Birmingham City. Some claims in Germany even stated they could sign the player as a free agent, and then just pay training compensation to the Championship side.
That plan was soon rubbished and Dortmund have had to part with more than £20m to secure the signing.
There’s obviously great curiosity in Germany about the player, with little known given he’d been playing in the Championship. To get some background, German newspaper Bild have spoken to Pep Clotet, who left Birmingham City on July 8th.
When asked about Dortmund paying the highest fee ever for a 17 year old, the manager insisted it will be worth it: “I know that it is a lot of money, especially now and through Corona. But I’m honest: €26.5 are not too much for Jude. He has a huge future ahead of him in Dortmund – and I’m sure that he can advance to the next level there. And in the end Dortmund will make a lot of money from him.”
Asked to go over the player’s strengths and weaknesses, Clotet said: “Jude is very self-critical, willing to learn and mentally very stable. He manages to create a connection between the team and fans like no other because he shows an insane passion.
“He is very young and has never played in a club other than Birmingham. That is probably his only weakness. I advised him to learn the language as quickly as possible and to adapt to the new culture.”
