Jude Bellingham has been urged to snub a move to Liverpool next summer by none other than Erling Haaland, who has been pleading with the England midfielder to join Manchester City instead of the Reds, according to reports. Liverpool have been linked with a potential move for Bellingham for a number of years, with Jurgen Klopp thought to be a keen admirer on adding a new first-choice midfielder to his ranks in the near future.
The Merseyside giants have been named among the favourites to land Bellingham when he eventually leaves Borussia Dortmund, where he remains tied down until the summer of 2025 as things stand. However, it seems as though Haaland may be attempting to disrupt Liverpool’s transfer plans by convincing Bellingham to join him at the Etihad Stadium at the end of the season.
The prolific City forward has already reached out to his former Dortmund team-mate with the aim of talking him into signing for the Premier League champions next year, according to CBS Sports. It is said that Liverpool and City are very much involved in an open race for Bellingham’s signature, with Haaland’s intervention potentially able to give his side the upper hand over the coming weeks and months.
The report adds that Bellingham is yet to make a firm decision over his next club as of yet, which is at odds with recent suggestions that he has already chosen to join Real Madrid in the not-too-distant future. A move to the Bernabeu is said to be ‘of appeal’ to the 19-year-old, but he is still believed to be keeping his options open as he weighs up the idea of taking on a new challenge away from the Bundesliga.
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It remains to be seen whether Liverpool will ultimately be successful in their efforts to sign Bellingham, who has firmly established himself as one of Europe’s brightest young talents over the last few years. The Reds tried to bring him to Anfield as a youth player back in 2012, but his family decided that it would be better for him to keep playing at Birmingham City before eventually joining Dortmund in the summer of 2020.
Meanwhile, the player himself insisted earlier this month that he is not yet considering the possibility of a move away from Dortmund, with his sights firmly set on continuing his development on an upward trajectory as things stand.
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“I’m here to win for Borussia Dortmund and I’m very happy here at the minute,” Bellingham told reporters before scoring for Dortmund in their defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League group stages. “I’m focused on all of the goals we have as a team and I’m not looking past that.
“The club have done loads for me and made me feel very welcome since I first came and gave me the opportunities to develop even further. To look past that and into the future would be disrespectful. It’s not something I am thinking about, to be honest.”
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