Pranav Nair
Ole Gunnar Solskajer reveals how serious Manchester United were to land Jude Bellingham
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed that Manchester United were very keen on landing Jude Bellingham while he was still at Birmingham City, missing out on a generational talent. The Englishman today is one of the finest players in world football and earned himself a high-profile move to Real Madrid last summer.
The Red Devils were well aware of the midfielder’s rise to prominence at St Andrew’s and were keen to secure his services when he was just 17. Already wise beyond his years, Bellingham was seeking out his next move and Old Trafford was mooted as a potential destination.
Solskjaer, the then manager at Man United has shed light on what happened behind the scenes. Speaking on The Overlap via YouTube, the Norwegian has laid the facts bare.
Solskjaer revealed that the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Bryan Robson and Eric Cantona were all present at the club the day Bellingham came to visit. As far as trying to convince budding young talents go, the Red Devils could not have three better club legends to sway his mind.
While United sold their plan well, or at least tried to, Bellingham for his age knew exactly what he wanted. He was keen to secure regular playtime, and it remains unclear if United were willing to give it to him right off the bat.
“Jude wanted certain amount of minutes in the first team. He was 17 at the time… and he was the most mature 17 year old I’ve ever met, he had it all planned out.”
Players of Bellingham’s ability do not come along very often. At just 17, he already had the world at his feet and has lived up to that promise. His move to Borussia Dortmund certainly aided in his development, readying him for the challenge that lay at the Santiago Bernabeu. A player who was mentally ahead of the curve even in his teens, Bellingham certainly had an idea of what he wanted in his career.
With 20 goals and nine assists in 31 games this season across all competitions, Bellingham is a superstar in the Spanish capital. It appears unlikely at this point in time that we retain any hopes of securing his signature in the future.
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Solskjaer also pointed out that the Red Devils missed out on Declan Rice and Erling Haaland before they made their moves to Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund respectively. While the reasons were debated and will continue to be, there is little doubt that several history-altering opportunities were passed by.
