Julius Okorie
After arriving at Real Madrid in what was then considered a whooping £115 million mega move, England international, Jude Bellingham, is sure to further rise in value after winning the Champions League on Saturday at the expense of his former Club Borrussia Dortmund.
Little wonder the 20 year old described the Champions League final win as “best night of my life”. And why not winning the biggest prize in his first season with the Spanish giants is certainly not a cheap achievement.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe former Birmingham City ace has been a revelation in his first season after leaving Dortmund in the summer and he played his part in the final as Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior scored the decisive goals.
His appetite for the biggest games has seen him deliver an impressive 23-goal for Madrid. And if you think it just about winning the Champions league in his first season at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium it is more than that as Saturday’s victory at Wembley puts him in an elite class and making him just the fourth British player after Paul Lambert, Owen Hargreaves and Steve McManaman to have won the Champions League with a foreign clubs.
Bellingham who scored 12 goals in 92 appearances for Borrussia Dortmund between 2020 and 2023 underscored the importance of taking chances in breath-taking games like the Champions League final even as he admitted that there is huge pressure playing for a club like Real Madrid.
“It’s a special feeling. Some of my teammates have five or six titles and they said enjoy your first as it’s a feeling like no other when you reach the top of the mountain. Yes, it’s important to maintain that level but never forget your first and enjoy it. They were the better team for the majority but it comes down to moments and if you don’t kill us, then it will come back to haunt you.
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“It’s a hard club to play for when you get here. People don’t realise the magnitude of the club. To be here and settle the pressure with how I’ve done is really good. The pressure is a lot. There is a bubble of the players and the staff but outside of that it feels like the world is on top of you. Stuff happens in training and five seconds later it’s out in the media. That’s why winning for this club is so rewarding. You hold and absorb the pressure and then you get moments like this to enjoy until it starts again.”
Real Madrid are flying back to Spain on Sunday where the celebrations are set to continue. Bellingham is likely to play a huge part for England at this summer’s European Championships.
Real Madrid first won the Champions League in the 1955/56 season and have continued to accumulate more titles ever since. They also boast of 36 la Liga titles and 20 Copa del Rey among other titles.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
