Jude Bellingham turned down Manchester United offering him a move, with the Red Devils failing to give any assurances of how often he'd play.
That's according to former Manchester United captain, Rio Ferdinand, who says that he's heard from "a very good source" that Bellingham was in discussions with his former club. The England international has since moved onto Real Madrid, where he has netted 13 in his first 13 – and put himself as the outright favourite for the 2024 Ballon d'Or.
Given that the 20-year-old played 44 times in his first senior season with boyhood club Birmingham City, before playing 46, 44 and 42 times across three Borussia Dortmund campaigns, United's concerns now seem misplaced.
"Do you know what I heard it was?" Ferdinand said on Vibe with Five, "He [Bellingham] wanted some assurances about being a first-team player and United weren’t willing to give him those assurances, that’s what I heard from a very good source.
"He wasn’t given assurances of being around the first team and he’s said, ‘Do you know what? I know my worth, I know my value and if you don’t value me the way I see myself I’m going to have to jog on and go to another club’.
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"He’s gone and done that and he’s turned round and gone, ‘I told you guys, you didn’t believe me did you?’.
"And he’s gone to Real Madrid [and] the Bernabeu… they’ve just rebuilt it and he’s tearing it down! Unbelievable."
United were interested in Dortmund duo Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho during their Bundesliga stints, too, eventually signing the latter.
Bellingham once refused to travel to Manchester United to discuss a transfer because he didn’t want to miss training with Birmingham City.
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