It had been previously thought, for a long while that Liverpool FC were in pole position to land Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham. While it is always difficult to truly assess who is “winning” a transfer derby, until the player is actually signed, sealed and delivered, the Reds seem to have definitively fallen behind here.
The England national team star, who impressed at the World Cup, will want to sign with a team that is playing UEFA Champions League football next season, and right now, the Reds are on the outside looking in when it comes to top four.
It is being reported now that Real Madrid and Manchester City are the favorites now, with the Athletic’s David Ornstein claiming that Liverpool, after having been close to almost certainly signing him for months, are pretty much out of the running for the 19-year-old prodigy.
According to ESPN FC, City are actually pretty confident that they will sign Bellingham when all is said and done. No matter how it all ends, the battle for Bellingham will be one of the top narratives this summer silly season. Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Manchester United are all said to be interested, or at least they were, up until recently.
In the end, it will likely come down to who can spend more between Man City and Madrid, and if Erling Haaland, who made the move from Dortmund to The Etihad last summer, will be extremely effective in recruiting. No matter what happens, BVB maintain that they will hold firm on their transfer fee demand.
Liverpool, who kind of basically put all their eggs in one basket on this, are said to already be moving on to other midfield targets and fall back options.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.