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Chelsea legend Frank Lampard has confirmed that he tried signing Real Madrid superstar Jude Bellingham during his managerial reign at Stamford Bridge.
Bellingham, 20, joined Madrid from Borussia Dortmund last summer for £88 million and has become a European superstar. The 29-cap England international has registered 20 goals and 10 assists in 33 games across competitions.
The English midfielder's meteoric rise started at Dortmund whom he joined from EFL Championship outfit Birmingham City in July 2020 for £25 million. This made him the most expensive 17-year-old signing in history.
However, Bellingham could have joined Chelsea if Lampard got his way. The former Blues boss claims to have tried signing him in a glowing verdict of the 2023 Golden Boy winner (via Madrid Xtra):
"Bellingham is incredible. To go and do what he’s done in a Madrid, with the pressure, in a club that big, in a city that big… When I was at Chelsea, I tried to bring him. Wow, I was overwhelmed looking at this kid who was 16/17 at the time."
Jude Bellingham spent three years at Signal Iduna Park where he developed into one of Europe's most exciting talents. He made 132 appearances for Dortmund, posting 24 goals and 25 assists while becoming the youngest captain in their history.
Chelsea were never touted as an option for Bellingham this past summer. Real Madrid beat the likes of Liverpool to his services and they've reaped the rewards amid a record-breaking start to his Bernabeu career.
Former Chelsea youngster Josh McEachran on Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham's rise
English midfielder Josh McEachran spent two years at Birmingham after leaving Chelsea in 2015. He saw Jude Bellingham's emergence into the senior team at St Andrew's.
McEachran, now at Oxford City, delved into Bellingham's quick adaption to senior-level football and how physicality wasn't an issue. He told talkSPORT:
"As a 16-year-old, you think you could bully him almost, but he was a man at that age. What he done with the ball and his physique was unbelievable."
Bellingham has wreaked havoc since joining Real Madrid and eclipsed a record held by Los Blancos icons Cristiano Ronaldo and Alfredo Di Stefano. He broke the record for most goals scored in his first 15 games with the La Liga giants (14).
McEachran touched on the Englishman's incredible form this season:
"What he's doing at Real Madrid now, I probably didn't think as soon as it happened [this early in his career], but fair play to Jude he was unbelievable. You knew he was going on to big, big things."
Birmingham retired the No.22 shirt when Jude Bellingham left for BvB. That decision surprised many but his performances and ascension to the top of European football have explained this.
