England youngster Jude Bellingham's claim on international teammate Marcus Rashford shows exactly why Chelsea should make a move for the forward. It comes after the Blues have been linked with a switch for the Manchester United striker, with his contract dwindling.
After a difficult previous season, the 25-year-old has returned to form under new boss Erik ten Hag, even earning himself a place in the England squad for the World Cup after an absence since the European Championships final last summer. While for some, the move to a winter tournament will have hurt them, for Rashford it's only helped him further.
The forward scored in the 6-2 thrashing of Iran in the opening game of group B, but remained a substitute option in the 0-0 draw with USA that followed. He was then handed a start against Wales in a deciding final game and he took the chance with both hands, scoring a free kick before doubling his tally with a low strike shortly after.
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It led to plenty of praise from Bellingham, who said on his teammate: "I’m so happy for him (Rashford), what a performance. He was brilliant. When he gets the ball and he’s got that freedom to take people on, his end product is so good as well.
"The free kick, in a game like this where there’s big pressure on a free kick like that, and the way he’s delivered it is brilliant.” It's the point on end product that could tell Chelsea exactly why they need to make a move for Rashford should he decide to run his deal down.
The Blues have struggled for a goalscoring striker for a number of years now, with plenty of money spent trying to find the answer but failing to do so. Current boss Graham Potter has Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Kai Havertz and Armando Broja at his disposal up front, but they are far from prolific at this stage.
It underlines how important it could be to make the right call with the next No.9 brought into the club, should Chelsea wish to compete at the top end.
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