Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has clarified that Jude Bellingham’s position in his team will be as an attacking midfielder.
The England international has occupied a range of roles across his first two seasons in the Spanish capital. The failure to adequately replace Karim Benzema forced the natural midfielder into an uncharacteristically advanced role which sparked the best scoring form of his career.
Following the acquisition of Kylian Mbappé in the summer of 2024, Carlo Ancelotti shifted Bellingham into a more withdrawn midfield position, prompting his goal tally to drop from 23 to 14 despite playing 600 more minutes across his second campaign.
Alonso, who hurriedly replaced Ancelotti ahead of the Club World Cup, spent the summer tournament openly experimenting with a range of formations. Bellingham started all six matches as Madrid made it to the semifinals while operating in a vast array of roles, shifting between one of the most attacking outlets to one of the more defensive.
Shoulder surgery forced Bellingham to miss Madrid’s first five fixtures of the new campaign before making his long-awaited return as a late substitute against Espanyol on Saturday.
Madrid have made a perfect start to the season under Alonso, collecting six wins from six, but the Spanish coach insisted that Bellingham would be warmly welcomed back into the first-team setup. Exactly where that would be on the pitch was also cleared up.
“Jude’s position is as an attacking midfielder,” Alonso told assembled media over the weekend. “He has an incredible range of movement, and the more we can find him, the better our performance. The Club World Cup was a different experience. With him and [Eduardo] Camavinga, we have two additional options, two top-class players.”
Recently departed Real Madrid cult hero Lucas Vázquez replied to Bellingham’s post hailing his return with the simple line: “Star is back.” Who is overshadowed by this blinding beacon remains to be seen.
Aurélien Tchouaméni is the only midfielder to start all six games this season and has effectively locked down the central defensive role. Federico Valverde, Madrid’s answer to Steven Gerrard in the eyes of Alonso, is never far from the teamsheet.
Arda Güler would be the most obvious figure to make way for Bellingham. The ever-improving Turkish playmaker has received warm praise from Alonso after bulking up over the summer to add some gusto to his innate grace.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jude Bellingham: Xabi Alonso Reveals Change of Plan for Real Madrid’s Returning Star.