Gareth Southgate is ready to give Jude Bellingham his Wembley chance - but warned the Bundesliga is holding him back.
England teenager Bellingham, 18, is regarded as one of the best talents in Europe and has dominated Champions League matches for Borussia Dortmund. But Bellingham’s path has often been blocked in becoming a regular starter despite his obvious and precocious talent and now Southgate has hinted why the midfielder has not had more chances.
Three Lions boss Southgate said the standard of the Premier League is "undoubtedly higher" than the Bundesliga and that is the biggest factor holding him back along with Dortmund’s "inconsistent" season.
Southgate, set to give Bellingham his 12th cap against Ivory Coast, said: "The league is definitely a brilliant league for young players and coaches to develop but of course the standard of the Premier League is undoubtedly higher, I think we see that in the European competitions.
"Our top teams are going to be right at the end of the Champions League every year, the financial power of our league is blowing everyone else out of the water so our big teams are going to be the main players in those competitions as they have been in the last years really.
"We’ve talked to him about his game this week. There are things, understandably for any player, for him to work on and for him some specifics we are looking for from him. But he is very coachable, wants to learn and is highly motivated.
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"He is already getting brilliant experiences with club and European football already so he’ll be involved in the game and it will be good to see how he does. He is developing exceptionally well for a player of his age. He is being asked to play in a number of different positions this year.
"Dortmund have played 3-4-3 where he has been one of the double pivots, 4-3-3 where he plays as one of the 8s and a diamond where he has played on the outside of a diamond. He has different tactical challenges to deal with. The team have been a bit inconsistent."
