Three Lions prodigy Jude Bellingham has been the butt of the jokes in the England dressing room - after confessing his mum still makes his bed for him.
The midfielder, who turned 19 in June, scored England's first goal of the World Cup and is regarded as his country's brightest young talent. But that has not stopped his teammates poking fun at him in Qatar, where England take on Wales in their final group-stage game on Tuesday evening.
Bellingham may have been kicking himself after lifting the lid on how his mother still makes his bed at his home in Germany, where he continues to excel for Borussia Dortmund. Denise Bellingham moved to the continent with her son when he left boyhood club Birmingham City to join Dortmund in 2020, and Jude previously opened up on how she keeps him "grounded".
While on England duty at the World Cup, the teenager has also revealed to teammates that Denise makes his bed - which prompted no end of playful backlash from Jordan Henderson in particular. On-loan Everton defender Conor Coady opened up on the interaction and how Henderson, 32, has taken the youngster under his wing as part of England's Lions' Den coverage.
"Hendo looks after Jude like there is no tomorrow," Coady, 29, said. "The other day he [Bellingham] said something about his mum making his bed. We are talking Jude Bellingham here, one of the best young players in the world. Hendo sat up at dinner and said: 'What?'. Jude said, 'My mum makes my bed'. Hendo was bashing and bashing him."
Liverpool fans may be particularly interested to hear about the strong bond which has formed between Henderson and Bellingham. The Reds have made the gifted box-to-box player their priority transfer target for 2023 and have long been viewed as one of his most likely destinations next year, when Dortmund could be willing to sell up for the right price.
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However, prising Bellingham from Westfalenstadion - where he is under contract until the summer of 2025 - will prove a difficult task. Not only is he valued at over £100million by the Black and Yellow, he is also coveted by a number of other giant clubs across Europe.
Bellingham's stock has only increased further in Qatar, where he started England's 6-2 thumping of Iran and goalless draw against United States. The youngster scored a brilliant header to open the scoring against Iran and is set to play a major role if the Three Lions reach the knockout stage of the tournament, even though the latest reports suggest he could be named on the bench to face Wales on Tuesday evening.
