Rio Ferdinand has said that he has “no qualms” in Jude Bellingham being handed the Borussia Dortmund captaincy amid a comparison with both Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.
The former Birmingham City youngster has sparkled since he swapped St Andrews for the Signal Iduna Park in the summer of 2020. His form this season has arguably been the best of his career and he has already notched eight goals in all competitions; displays that have seen him bestowed with the Dortmund captaincy on a couple of occasions.
Some have claimed that honour has come far too early in the youngster’s fledgling career, something that former Manchester United defender Ferdinand disagrees with.
In assessing Bellingham’s displays this season, the ex-Red Devil appeared to hint that the 19-year-old could potentially surpass the likes of Lampard and Gerrard.
Speaking with BT Sport, he said: “19 years old in Champions League football, how many of us were being talked about ‘oh we’ll give him the armband’?
“There’s a queue that’d go out the dressing room before we’d get it and you’re talking about the best of our generation, the Steven Gerrard’s, Frank Lampard’s, Wayne Rooney ’s they weren’t in the Champions League at 19. This kid, we’ll give him it and there’s no qualms about it, not a question because we know he’s ready.”
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Having been the latest to come off Dortmund’s hugely impressive conveyor belt, Bellingham has been touted to make another big-money move sooner rather than later.
Manchester City and Liverpool have both been linked with a move for his signature and Ferdinand has claimed that the midfielder’s attitude could see him be a success no matter where his next destination is.
He continued: “I think he improves every team in the world, he’s that good. For young players aspiring to become footballers, you’ve got to understand that, your attitude and mentality play such a big part of that.
“He just runs into space, you don’t just walk into games and things just happen. There’s a process to go through and that comes from mindset, mentality, dedication and talent but the mentality and mindset are huge.”
Bellingham currently has just under three years left to run on his current contract with Dortmund having already racked up over 100 appearances for the Bundesliga giants.
He is expected to play a key role at this winter’s World Cup in Qatar having already earned 17 caps for the England national team despite his tender years. The youngster played the full 90 minutes in Dortmund’s 0-0 draw with potential future employers Man City in Germany on Tuesday evening.
