Real Madrid News
Erling Haaland comments on Bellingham’s start at Real Madrid: “Makes me really happy”
Jude Bellingham has made an explosive start to life as a Real Madrid player. Arriving from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth an initial €103 million, the 20-year-old has become the face of the team in the early parts of the season.
Bellingham has already scored five goals in his four official appearances for Real Madrid and is sitting atop the goalscoring charts in La Liga.
The England international has also impressed with his maturity and leadership in a very short time at the Spanish capital club.
Bellingham’s stunning start in Madrid has not gone unnoticed either, with the youngster drawing praise from all corners.
Erling Haaland happy with Bellingham’s start
In a recent interview with France Football (h/t L’Equipe), Manchester City superstar and Real Madrid target Erling Haaland also revealed that he had seen Bellingham’s debut with the Spanish club and was very happy with how things are going.
Bellingham and Haaland crossed paths at Borussia Dortmund before the latter left for Manchester City last year.
And the Norwegian striker, who is on Real Madrid’s radar, expressed his delight at how his former teammate had started in Spain.
“By the way, I saw the incredible debut of Jude (Bellingham, his former team-mate at Dortmund) at Real Madrid, and that makes me very happy for him,” Haaland said.
From former teammates to future teammates?
Having already played together at Dortmund, there remains a possibility that Haaland and Bellingham could reunite with each other at Real Madrid in the future.
Los Blancos are long-term admirers of the Norwegian and see him as an option to reinforce their attack next year, along with Kylian Mbappe, especially if the latter signs a new contract at PSG.
Real Madrid have started the 2023/24 campaign on a strong note, winning six in six across all competitions.
What makes the streak even more impressive is that they have had to do so without a number of key players present.
Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militao, Arda Guler and Vinicius Jr are still out on the sidelines while Dani Ceballos and Ferland Mendy have only recently returned from injury.
But, earlier this week, Dani Carvajal became the latest victim of the injury course as he sustained a muscle issue that ruled him out of the match against Union Berlin last night.
Carvajal will undergo MRI tomorrow
Carvajal had been in fine form prior to his injury earlier this week and his absence is certainly a blow.
With a game against Atletico Madrid coming up later this weekend, Mario Cortegana of The Athletic is reporting that the 31-year-old will undergo his MRI scans tomorrow morning.
It should present a clearer picture of the extent of the veteran right-back’s injury following which a potential date for his return could be determined.
Prior to the Union Berlin match, manager Carlo Ancelotti sounded optimistic about Carvajal’s condition, as he said:
“Carvajal has an overload, we prefer not to take any risks. It’s nothing serious, he’ll undergo tests tomorrow and we hope he recovers soon. Carvajal can make it to the derby. The feelings are good.”
But tomorrow’s scans should provide a better picture of how his condition is and when he can make a comeback.
Lucas Vazquez: an able deputy
With Dani Carvajal unavailable, Carlo Ancelotti turned to Lucas Vazquez for the right-back position and the veteran Spaniard did not disappoint last night.
Indeed, the 32-year-old was a regular outlet going forward down the right flank and made six key passes against Union Berlin.
And Ancelotti will count on him again in the derby versus Atleti if Carvajal’s recovery will take longer.
