Jude Bellingham’s inclusion in England’s leadership group is confirmation of the supreme trust Gareth Southgate places in him. The role is a reflection of Bellingham’s maturity and the respect his team-mates have for him. It is also another step on the way to Bellingham becoming England’s captain one day.
The down-to-earth Real Madrid player is a magnificent role model. When England hosted their open training session at Carl Zeiss Jena on Tuesday, Bellingham stayed on and on meeting all the demands for selfies from fans. He makes his 30th appearance for England against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday and is still only 20.
Bellingham is accompanied by Declan Rice, the 25-year-old Arsenal midfielder, in joining Harry Kane, 30, and Kyle Walker, 34, in the leadership group. “They cover different age-groups,” Southgate explained during his flying visit to the Arena AufSchalke for media duties on Saturday. “I want the opinion of the four boys but also they’re involved with different age groups in the squad, so will be able to pick up what’s going on in different areas of the squad.”
Bellingham will be able to give Southgate a “sense check” of the mood amongst the younger players. “There are a lot of younger players and I want to make sure I’m in touch with the voices of the younger players as well,” Southgate said. “I don’t want to leave here with any stone unturned. I don’t want to have missed anything and it is always important to know what the players are thinking. They have good views and good experiences.”