Jude Bellingham has revealed what shocked him most about Chelsea as Borussia Dortmund reigned victorious over the Blues in the Champions League round of 16 first-leg. The 19-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League for a while now as he continues to impress for club and country.
Bellingham, who sees his contract at the Signal Iduna Park expire in 2025, has been subject to long-term interest from Chelsea, football.london understands. The west Londoners watched the midfielder during his time in the academy at Birmingham City but, after not acting on their interest, Dortmund signed him instead.
Despite the record-breaking arrival of Enzo Fernandez last month, Todd Boehly remains eager to further bolster the club's midfield options and the England international has been identified as a 'top target'. The American billionaire was in attendance at the Signal Iduna Park so he now knows first-hand what Bellingham offers.
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The youngster captained Dortmund against Chelsea, leading his club to victory. Karim Adeyemi proved the difference between the two sides - he caught the Blues off-guard and this surprised Bellingham.
Speaking to CBS Sports, the Englishman revealed that he was stunned by Potter's decision to leave Adeyemi in a one-versus-one scenario with Enzo Fernandez. Chelsea had a corner in the second-half but, as the ball was cleared, Dortmund hit them on the counter-attack.
"Just pace, wasn’t it? I was surprised they left just one back especially when they knew it was Karim that was going to be breaking," Bellingham said. "He got the ball under control well and he just used the attributes that we all know he's got and what we’ve seen in training from him. Now that he’s adapted and is comfortable we know he can create moments like that."
With Dortmund taking only one-goal advantage to Stamford Bridge for the second-leg, Bellingham has warned his teammates to be on their game. He said: "It felt good.
"It's a small win in comparison to what we have to face in a few weeks' time. We have to go to Stamford Bridge and get another positive result, but we can be really pleased with how we played and how we defended in the second half but we need to understand it's not over and they can definitely come back with a lot of power.
"It was a very strong performance, especially the second half," he added. "We created a lot of chances and efforts on goal but I am disappointed with the goal we conceded.
"I thought we were the dominant team in the second half. It is half-time in the tie, we have to regroup."
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