JUDE PASSPORT TO IMMORTALITY

Golden boy Bellingham takes another step towards destiny

- John Cross

JUDE BELLINGHAM has not only become a European champion but has also found the fuel to drive him to glory.

At 20, Bellingham has won the Champions League, La Liga, been voted La Liga's Player of the Year and if he does not win the Ballon d'Or this year, it is just a matter of time.

The Real Madrid star is destined to become the best player in the world after lifting the European Cup.

Afterwards on the pitch he talked about proving people wrong, having first bowed to his manager Carlo Ancelotti, above, in appreciation. "You go through life with people telling you that you can't do things," he said.

That is all well and good because Bellingham uses that for motivation. But we must be clear. No one in their right mind doubted Bellingham. Every big side wanted to sign him even before he was a teenager - and yet he stayed loyal to his boyhood club, to his roots and listened to the advice of his family.