'Jude is not Jude!': Bellingham comes under fire after Real Madrid struggles

Suraj Radia

• 3 Oct 2024 21:00 BST
• 3 min read

Jude Bellingham is one of the front runners for this year’s Ballon d’Or but the Real Madrid star has already come under criticism for his ‘palpable’ decline this season.

Bellingham was a revelation in his debut season for Real, grabbing 19 goals and six assists in La Liga as an advanced midfielder playing off the striker for the majority of the campaign.

However, the 21-year-old has struggled to match his output this season, having yet to open his account after seven games in all competitions despite scoring six times in the same amount of appearances last year.

Spanish outlet AS has claimed that ‘nothing works like before’ with Real Madrid this season, with manager Carlo Ancelotti admitting he was ‘worried’ after his side surprisingly lost their 36-game unbeaten run to Lille in the Champions League this week.

While most observers appreciate that Bellingham’s role has changed after the arrival of Kylian Mbappe, the England international has failed to make a significant impact as a deeper midfielder.

With Vinicius Junior also struggling for form this season and defensive injuries piling up, the loss of form of two of Real’s most important stars has raised alarm bells in Spain after their stuttering recent displays.

What is going wrong at Real Madrid?

When looking solely at results, some would suggest that any calls for panic are excessive given that Real still remain unbeaten in the league and just three points behind leaders Barcelona.

Vinicius, too, has still provided three goals and four assists in the league, yet AS believe the Brazilian has yet to reach peak fitness this season, citing his decline in the amount and success rate of his dribbles and shots.

Real have struggled to find their rhythm after the retirement of Toni Kroos over the summer, particularly with midfielders such as Aurelien Tchouameni being forced to feature at centre-back due to injuries.

Kroos’ retirement, combined with Mbappe’s signing, has seen Ancelotti often field a 4-4-2 compared to the 4-3-3 of last season but Bellingham’s failure to adapt to his new role has contributed to the poor displays, despite Ancelotti insisting the midfielder’s position ‘is the same’.

He said: "His position is the same as last year, with all the success achieved last year. Now things are not going as clearly for him, but we just have to wait."

STATS

Jude Bellingham

AM, M (C)

Real Madrid

Jude Bellingham

AM, M (C)

Real Madrid

All Tournaments

2024/25

• 6

  Games

• 0

  Goals

• 2

  Assists

View all stats

Mbappe, too, has yet to showcase true chemistry with his teammates despite netting seven times already for his new side and Real will need to get the best out of their under-fire Galacticos to have any chance of retaining their titles this season.