As Jude Bellingham continues to enhance his reputation for both England and Dortmund, Liverpool are among the clubs to hold “significant interest.”
Bellingham has emerged as one of England’s most exciting young players since his breakthrough at Birmingham, carving out a regular role under Gareth Southgate.
His decision to join Dortmund in an initial £25 million deal in 2020 has proved to be the right one, with the 18-year-old already a first-choice starter at the Westfalenstadion.
In his first season in Germany, Bellingham made 46 appearances, scoring four goals and setting up another four, while so far this season he has netted once and assisted three times in five games.
Unsurprisingly, this has led to speculation over a move to the Premier League in the future, with the Daily Star claiming an exclusive in suggesting Liverpool are preparing an £80 million offer for next summer.
That is far from a reliable source, but more interesting is a report in the Times which includes information from Merseyside journalist Paul Joyce.
While explaining that Dortmund would be “reluctant” to sell Bellingham within the next year due to the anticipated exit of Erling Haaland, Joyce and Matt Lawton add that there is “significant interest” in the midfielder.
Liverpool, along with Man City, Man United and Chelsea, are “expected to pursue him should he become available.”
It is suggested that Bellingham may be better served staying at Dortmund until 2023, however, in order to aid his development and also boost his value.
With a likely role at the 2022 World Cup, the youngster could increase both his transfer fee and the salary he would command if he made a big-money switch back to England.
Though it could be argued that Liverpool should prioritise a move for a player like Haaland, rather than Bellingham, in a way it seems more likely that the latter would make the transfer to Anfield.
He enjoys a blossoming relationship with Jordan Henderson, who has hailed him as a “fantastic player,” and he could relocate much closer to his native Birmingham.
Any deal to sign a generational midfielder like Bellingham would almost certainly break Liverpool’s transfer record, but perhaps it would be worth it as an evolution takes shape on Merseyside.
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