Jude Bellingham has revealed he shared a joke with former team-mate Erling Haaland after the pair both drew blanks in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Bellingham and Haaland played together at Borussia Dortmund last season, but the latter has hit the ground running in the Premier League and Champions League since moving to Manchester City. Both stars were on target at the Etihad Stadium in September, with City coming out on top, but the reverse fixture in Germany ended goalless.
The draw was enough to send both teams through to the last 16 with a game to spare. City will progress as group winners, with Dortmund in second, and the English team's head-to-head advantage means nothing can change that in the final round of group games.
Bellingham was spotted sharing a moment with Haaland, who was replaced at half-time, at the end of the game in Germany and was asked about his former team-mate when interviewed.
"Obviously it is nice to keep all of them [City players] out, but obviously him in particular because we know how dangerous he is," Bellingham told BT Sport after the game. Haaland had scored in each of his three previous City appearances in the competition, including braces against Sevilla and FC Copenhagen.
"I said to him at the end of the game, 'We’re 1-1 now on goals!'" he added.
"So I’m not too satisfied because I haven’t scored either! But of course we got the draw and that’s what we needed from the game and we’re just happy to go through really so we can carry on this journey."
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Bellingham continues to be linked with a Premier League move after stepping up in Dortmund colours this season and excelling as part of their leadership team. He could be in line to start for England at the World Cup, with City midfielder Kalvin Phillips an injury concern, and City, Liverpool and Real Madrid have been linked with a summer move.
"19 years old in Champions League football, how many of us were being talked about ‘oh we’ll give him the armband’?" pundit Rio Ferdinand asked. The former Birmingham City teenager captained his team for the first time earlier this season with regular skipper Marco Reus and deputy Mats Hummels unavailable, though Hummels wore the armband on Tuesday.
“There’s a queue that’d go out the dressing room before we’d get it and you’re talking about the best of our generation, the Steven Gerrards, Frank Lampards, Wayne Rooneys, they weren’t in the Champions League at 19. This kid, we’ll give him it and there’s no qualms about it, not a question because we know he’s ready.
"I think he improves every team in the world, he’s that good. For young players aspiring to become footballers, you’ve got to understand that, your attitude and mentality play such a big part of that."
