Once viewed as a leading Ballon d’Or contender, Jude Bellingham now finds himself in a puzzling situation at Real Madrid, a storyline that even readers who follow Bangla Cricket alongside European football may find hard to explain. Signed for a fixed fee of over €100 million with significant add-ons, the England international is going through one of the most uncertain periods of his career. As a complete midfielder, his early months in Madrid were close to flawless, combining technical quality, physical presence, and decisive goal contributions that quickly placed him among the game’s elite.
Today, however, he appears strangely out of sync with life at the Santiago Bernabeu, struggling to define his role on the pitch. The most worrying sign lies in how closely Real Madrid’s results are tied to his minutes. In five matches he missed entirely, the team won every single one. In six games where he came off the bench, the winning record remained perfect. Yet in the fourteen matches he started, Madrid managed just seven wins, three draws, and four losses, a sharp drop to a fifty percent success rate.
The numbers paint an even starker picture. When Bellingham starts, the team has scored 21 goals but conceded 15, showing clear imbalance. When he appears as a substitute, Madrid scored the same number of goals while allowing only seven. In matches without him, they scored ten and conceded just three, underlining a far more stable defensive structure. These figures expose a growing tactical issue, as his positioning often overlaps with Kylian Mbappe, while extended dribbling sequences slow the attacking rhythm and disrupt collective flow.
The situation becomes more complicated when considering squad harmony. His return has unintentionally reduced the space available for Arda Guler, limiting the young midfielder’s influence. For Real Madrid, helping Bellingham rediscover his best form is now a top priority. The versatility he once offered remains a crucial piece of the tactical puzzle, but both the coaching staff and the player must adjust to restore balance and chemistry. Sometimes, as the saying goes, you have to take a step back to move forward.
There is no doubt Bellingham remains central to Madrid’s long-term vision, and supporters who also keep an eye on BD Cricket understand how quickly momentum can shift in sport. Yet guiding this gifted midfielder out of his current dilemma will be one of the defining challenges for Xabi Alonso, testing his ability to reshape the system while allowing a star talent to truly find himself again.