Can Jude Bellingham Become Mourinho’s New Lampard at Real Madrid?
Steve McManaman believes Jude Bellingham could yet become José Mourinho’s new Frank Lampard at Real Madrid – but only if the tactical puzzle around Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior can be solved.
Speaking to GOAL on behalf of Disney+, with Mourinho’s first La Liga game back in charge set to air on ESPN as Real visit Espanyol on Saturday, the former Madrid midfielder weighed up how Bellingham fits into a star-studded attack.
Can Bellingham be Mourinho’s Lampard?
Asked directly if Bellingham can reprise the kind of advanced, goal-scoring midfield role Lampard once thrived in under Mourinho, McManaman pointed to the Englishman’s evolving position.
“I think he did that in his first year didn’t he,” McManaman said, noting how Bellingham initially operated high up the pitch. “But time will tell because the year before last he dropped a little bit deeper, and last year he struggled for goals.”
The arrival of Mbappé, he argued, changed everything.
“I think with the introduction of Kylian, his role changed, but whether Jose will want to play that role this year, we'll have to wait and see. It seems that he wants to play Kylian, Vini Junior and [Yan] Diomande, and that's going to be the big point in the end, whether the space is there for Jude to make that front four.”
That’s the crux: does Bellingham become part of a devastating front four, or does Mourinho rein him in?
A front four… when La Liga allows it
McManaman can see the attacking fantasy working – at least in certain domestic fixtures.
“I think in La Liga, in certain games he'll get away with it, that front four,” he said. In those matches, he expects Bellingham to surge forward and rediscover his scoring touch. “He'll be driving forward and he'll certainly score goals Jude because that's what he wants to do and he loves to attack those avenues arriving late, so let's hope that happens. But we'll all have to wait and see.”
The optimism is there. So is the caution. The shape of the team will decide which side wins.
Mbappé, Vinícius and one big headache
For McManaman, the real tactical riddle sits with Mbappé and Vinícius.
“I think the biggest conundrum is getting the best out of Kylian and out of Vini Junior and seeing where they both want to play,” he said. “Because as we know, and you only have to see the World Cup, both of them like to drift out to the left and both like to stand left, so it'll be interesting whose job it is to stay in the centre of the box and stay in the centre of the park because both like to come towards the ball.”
He didn’t dress it up: neither is a natural No.9.
“They're both not number nines. I know they bought a young lad, [Carlos] Espi, who scored a couple of goals in pre-season already, he is a number nine and Gonzalo Garcia who's now at Fulham was a number nine.”
Espi is raw. Gonzalo Garcia has gone. The two superstars up top prefer space to the channel, grass to the penalty spot.
“Vini Junior and Kylian are not, for all the goals they've scored, they're not orthodox fox in the box-type stuff,” McManaman stressed.
Will Bellingham be the one to crash the box?
That is where Bellingham might come roaring back into the story.
“So maybe it will be up to Jude to make that push into the box,” McManaman suggested, before circling back to the man who will decide it all. “But I'm waiting to see what Jose does and what Jose changes and how Jose's going to help them operate because if you've got Yan Diomande crossing the ball into the box, who's going to be there to head them in because you know Kylian and Vini are not prolific in the air? I'm really interested in that side of what Real Madrid are going to do.”
One manager. Three superstars. One glaring hole in the middle of the penalty area.
Mourinho’s answer to that question could define Bellingham’s season – and Real Madrid’s entire attacking identity.
