Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton has claimed that Liverpool target Jude Bellingham is potentially world-class.
Bellingham is well-known to be Liverpool’s top priority this summer, they’ll try as hard as they can to get him to Anfield. And according to Barton, he’s well worth it.
The former Manchester City midfielder has claimed that Bellingham is actually the only player in the current England squad who’s anything like ‘world-class.’
Taking to Twitter to post about Harry Kane’s recent goal-scoring record for England, Barton suggested that Bellingham is actually better than the Three Lions captain. According to the Rovers coach, the 19-year-old ‘has a chance’ to be world-class.
That’s more than can be said for Kane, apparently. The Tottenham striker is below Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker, Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney in Barton’s eyes.
Bellingham already on the world-class path
Obviously Barton isn’t directly comparing Bellingham and Kane here. That would be impossible, they’re completely different types of players.
But to suggest that Harry Kane isn’t a world-class forward is simply wrong. Perhaps Barton is allowing winners medals, or lack of them, to cloud his judgement here. But there’s no way that Kane isn’t in the very top bracket.
As for Bellingham, his assessment is probably correct. Some would place the 19-year-old in the ‘world-class’ category already but he perhaps still has a way to go to get there.
That isn’t a problem though, he’s literally still a teenager. For a player his age, Bellingham is absolutely on course to become one of the best in the business.
That’s why Liverpool are desperate to sign him, and that’s why he’ll likely cost them over £100m if they do.
Move to Anfield and he’ll join a number of world-class players already at the club. Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Thiago Alcantara… We hate to think what Barton wold have to say about that gang of also-rans mind you.
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