England midfielder Jude Bellingham was outstanding as the Three Lions swept Croatia aside on Saturday, and it has led to Gary Lineker issuing his verdict on who is the best player out of the Real Madrid star, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes.
England looked to face a tough test when they travelled to Rijeka to face Slaven Bilic’s men, with a starting XI consisting of the likes of Luka Modric, Ivan Perisic, Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic, but Thomas Tuchel’s men blew them away in exceptional circumstances with a 7-0 thrashing.
Every Three Lions player put in a strong performance on the evening, but Bellingham took many of the plaudits following an imperious display.
Jude Bellingham vs Croatia | |
|---|---|
Minutes | 90 |
Touches | 108 |
Goals | 1 |
Assists | 3 |
Big chances created | 5 |
Successful dribbles | 4/6 |
Accurate crosses | 2/2 |
Accurate long balls | 6/7 |
Duels won | 8 |
He was the star of the show in terms of goal contributions, as he scored once and registered three assists for his teammates, carrying on his fine form from the World Cup.
Lineker said previously in the summer that he believes the 23-year-old could go on to become ‘England’s greatest ever footballer’, and he is clearly a huge fan of the Real Madrid superstar.
His latest display for Tuchel’s side led to Lineker discussing where he ranks in terms of England’s all-time greatest midfielders, on the latest episode of the Rest is Football podcast.
Of course, earlier in the 21st century, the big debate was about how England could fit all three of Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes into the same XI.
It was something they struggled to do, with Scholes often being played on the left side of midfield instead, as the ‘Golden Generation’ ultimately failed to deliver what they should have done given the calibre of players they had at the time.
Still, there was no doubting the quality of all three players individually, given they are three of the best to ever play in the Premier League.
Nevertheless, Lineker believes that Bellingham might already be ahead of all three, when looking at England’s best midfielder of the century.
He said: “He’s still very young. He’s just coming absolutely into his prime now, Jude, and it’s probably a little bit too early, but I said we’d do it anyway.
“But where does he stand in all-time midfielders for England? Because I put him top, right, and we were only talking about perhaps this century.
“So I think he’s got the power and the pace and the ability of Gerrard. I think he’s almost got the passing ability of Scholes, but not quite, and he’s definitely got the finishing and the arrival in the box of Frank Lampard.
“So he’s close on all three of the primary strengths of all three players. He might, you know, he might be slightly behind on each one, but overall, as a package, he’s got all three.”
Bellingham Will be England’s Best Ever Midfielder
Whether he’s there now is still up for debate, but Bellingham is showing everything to suggest that he will be the greatest midfielder to ever play for England.
The 23-year-old already has everything in his locker, and he is still years away from officially hitting his prime as a football player, which is exciting for fans of Real Madrid and the Three Lions.
Bellingham continues to show he can do everything and, as impressive as his goal contribution numbers and his ability to glide around the pitch are, his work rate has been immense in recent months and shows why he is such an important all-round player.
To have 59 caps for England at the age of 23 is impressive, and he has already matched Scholes’ goal tally for his country, with the strike against Croatia being his 14th for the Three Lions.
Bellingham vs Scholes vs Lampard vs Gerrard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
England | Caps | Goals | Assists |
Bellingham | 59 | 14 | 15 |
Scholes | 66 | 14 | 14 |
Lampard | 106 | 29 | 12 |
Gerrard | 114 | 21 | 23 |
Bellingham does have some way to go to reach Lampard’s total of 29 goals in 106 caps, but the way he has been performing for his country in recent months, it won’t take him long to surpass that number either.
Now, England fans and Tuchel will be hoping that Bellingham can finally use his quality and influence to lead the Three Lions to a major trophy too.
If they play like they did for the full 90 minutes against Croatia in all matches at a major tournament, not many nations will be able to live with them.
