Jude Bellingham must play on the edge despite the threat of a ban on 12 games

It is a difficult job to keep Jude Bellingham silent. Just ask Gareth Southgate, who chose it for Euro 2020 at the age of 17 mainly for an early tournament experience. “His mentality is” no, no, no “. He wants to start, he wants to take corners, he wants the team captain, anyway, ”recalls Southgate.

Bellingham was never afraid to say what he thought of the coaches of England and on the field, it is the same with the officials of the match. Now aged 21, others at his age are based in the background while older teammates speak. Bellingham takes this on himself as a player who wants a central stadium. To borrow his own sentence: “Who else?”

All this augurs well for England in the future when a new captain is necessary after Harry Kane has given the armband. Bellingham will be a solid candidate and has shown enough attributes to be included in the “Leadership group” in Southgate in the last European championship.

Being sent for rude and abusive language against Osasuna last weekend was not one for the curriculum vitae of a future captain of England. Bellingham could face a potential 12 game ban if it is determined that it was insulting towards the referee, rather than expressing his frustration, as he did.

However, it showed what precocity Thomas Tuchel and Carlo Ancelotti have on their hands. Not since Wayne Rooney began her career in England, 22 years ago, that England had a player like this.

It must be said that Bellingham was extremely unhappy to see Red last weekend, that he said “F — off” or “F — You” to José Luis Munuera Montero. The decision reflected more the Spanish referee than on Bellingham. Most would be surprised if Montero passed the remaining 51 minutes of the match without hearing nasty words flying in his direction.

“Do we say that you can’t swear?” In this game which is emotional and pressure and at high octane, if I swear in a referee, he returns it, “said Craig Burley, an ESPN expert, one of the only reasonable analysts on the subject.

“Insulting your family crossing the line but if you are turned upside down by a decision and use blasphemies – the maximum [punishment] is a yellow. Everyone wakes up and thinks about how they can be offended today. Do we want 11 models on the ground?

It is known for some referees of the Premier League to give as well as when the players swear. Kasper Schmeichel told how the attitude of Mark Clattenburg was: “No bull —-, he would tell you about F — Off if you were a D —.” Mark Halsey tells a story to tell a player to “F — off” as a response. “He turned around, completely confused and left” OK Mark, no problem, sorry “, said Halsey.

The real leader could become a scapegoat

It seemed that La Liga was trying to make arbitrating statements last weekend, with six red boxes in total and three of them – Yangel Herrera (Girona), Pablo Barrios (Atlético Madrid), Sheraldo Becker (Real Sociedad) – Var “upgrades”. It seems that Bellingham was collateral damage for repression on the backchat among the referees. We could argue that it is an easy target – it is one of the speakers, one Managers, and each team needs them.

The only way in which Montero’s decision can be justified is to reject others for similar tiny offenses in the coming weeks. Otherwise, Bellingham is a scapegoat.

“I am an English player … and when I speak on the field, it is normal that I use expressions that come naturally to me in English,” he said after the incident. “There was no insult, you can see in the video right away, it was an expression for myself, I don’t even go to the referee. But obviously, there was a misunderstanding. He thought I told him. “”

The decision to denounce the last whistle when Real attacked Valence last season was another shock. Bellingham directed a winning “goal”, but he had come a few seconds after the whistle – a rare occasion of an exploding referee with a team on the attack. “This is an objective F ——” were the words that saw Bellingham punished with a red card.

Take the bravado and the staging of Bellingham would reduce him as a player. A young passive player would not have burst into the first team of Birmingham City or Borussia Dortmund, not to mention a place for Real Madrid.

It is now clear that Bellingham is targeted by opponents for raw treatment or trying to cause it in a red card offense. It was clear a year ago when it was reserved during the friendly match of England with Brazil. Bellingham received late kicks that evening, then after a tackle on Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle midfielder took advantage of his reaction to maximize the chances of red.

There could be an answer in a change of paint with referees. A school of thought is that protests can influence the next decision. But others kill the referee with kindness. John Fashanu was a master – asking how the family is before a match and maintains friendly dialogue. Gary Lineker obtained a dressing from his father for having a referee when he was a child, which set up a career to never be reserved. Bellingham must find the path itself to keep its advantage and keep in the field.