RIO FERDINAND has called on Manchester United to sign teenage superstar Jude Bellingham because of his versatility as a midfielder.
The 18-year-old Borussia Dortmund man has attracted interest from across Europe since arriving in Germany last year.
He occupied a deeper role for the Bundesliga side last season, but has pushed on into the final third at the beginning of the 2021-22 campaign.
Bellingham has reaped the rewards of pushing further up the pitch, netting three times already, just one behind his overall tally at the end of last season.
His ability to shield the back four and add to the creativity going forward means he can fill a number of midfield roles.
And ex-Man Utd captain Ferdinand believes the Red Devils need to try and sign Bellingham as soon as possible.
When asked which midfield position Bellingham could fill at United, Ferdinand said on his FIVE YouTube channel: “Any. He’s that good.
“Serious. In the England youth teams there are times when he’s played as the holding midfielder. Times he’s played as the 8 and been box-to-box.
BETTING SPECIAL – GET £50 IN FREE BETS WITH WILLIAM HILL
“And also times when he’s been told he can join the attacks more. He has the capabilities and capacity to play all of the roles, he’s that good.
“I think for him, I see him as being someone who can do it all. There aren’t many midfielders in the game now that can attack and defend – affect the game at both ends.
“When you are one of the super clubs, there are talents out there that make you think if we have the capacity and financial muscle, then he’s one you don’t want to miss.”
22 GRAND JOB
Earlier this year, Birmingham City’s head of academy Mike Dodds explained the reason behind Bellingham choosing the No22 shirt was because he could play as a 4, 8 or 10.
“He would have been about 13 or 14 and like most boys that age, they want to be a No 10,” Dodds said. “And I remember, we sat down with him and we said, ‘we think you’re doing yourself a disservice, we think you can do all of it.
“So we came up with, ‘we think you can be a 22′. His eyes lit up and we knew had hooked him from then on in!
“We said we thought he could be a holding midfielder, or a four. We thought he could be a box-to-box, which is an eight. And we thought he could be a scorer and a creator, so a 10.
“And from the age of 13 onwards he has held on to that all the way through and you can see that in his game.
“He made his debut at Birmingham City and he said, ‘I want my squad number to be number 22’ and said the same thing at Dortmund.”
Man Utd will face competition from Liverpool if they are to try and sign Bellingham.
Last month, Borussia Dortmund confirmed England’s teenage sensation is on the Anfield side’s radar.
Dortmund Sporting Director Sebastian Kehl told Sport1: “There’s a lot of interest around Jude Bellingham, not only Liverpool.
“But there is no bottom line and no exit clause.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
