Jude Bellingham has credited Carlo Ancelotti for developing his game and said the veteran manager’s influence has allowed him take Real Madrid by storm since his move last summer.
The 20-year-old has scored 20 goals in his debut season in the Spanish capital and catapulted himself into the game’s elite with commanding performances.
The midfielder, who has been deployed as a No 10 for the majority of the campaign, said that Ancelotti’s ability to put players at ease and coax the best out of them has been crucial to him settling so quickly.
“I think the sign of a good manager is when he can make you believe that you’re a bit better than maybe you thought you were before,” Bellingham said.
“I think he fills me with that confidence every day, in training and in the game. He gives me the freedom to roam the pitch and express myself. Not only that, but he’s a top person. He makes you feel comfortable.
“It was a big move for me coming here with so many characters and legends, I think he’s been amazing in helping me adapt and basically make me understand my own potential. It’s definitely down to him how I’ve started at Madrid.”
Bellingham and his Madrid team-mates face Manchester City this evening in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, which is delicately poised at 3-3 after the first leg in Spain last week.
City are regarded as favourites due to their record of 30 European home matches unbeaten and having defeated Madrid 4-0 in the home leg of last season’s semi-final tie. However, Bellingham is not taking any notice of predictions.
“That’s just the impression from the outside, the feeling from everyone else,” he said. “I’m not a gambler and I’ve never been to the bookies, so I don’t know about betting favourites and things like that.
“But I do know that we’re a pretty good team ourselves. They’re the treble winners, they’re an amazing team but we’ve got some brilliant players. There’s external noise, but internally, we’re confident.”
'More has to be done to stop racist abuse'
Bellingham also touched on the racism that has been thrown at some of his team-mates this season. Aurelien Tchouameni was racially abused by a Mallorca supporter after scoring last weekend while Vinicius Jr has also been a regular victim of offensive chanting and gestures.
The England international demanded football’s authorities — particularly in Spain — do more to combat racism but admitted: “I doubt that will happen.”
“I think in the games where we go away, in La Liga especially, you almost get so used to it that I wasn’t even aware of the [Tchouameni] incident. I think that’s a massive problem in itself,” he added.
“More has got to be done, whether it’s the punishment and how you react to it or how you move proactively to [stop] this kind of thing.
“It’s disgusting. It shouldn’t happen. The people in power need to do more. No one deserves that kind of thing.
“I think the blame gets shifted more onto [Vinicius] because of maybe his playing style and the way he likes to express himself and I don’t think that’s fair. The game would miss players like Vini if he decided to take a break because of this thing. More needs to be done to support these players.”