Jude Bellingham ‘a gift for football’ - Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti praises record-breaking England star

Carlo Ancelotti says Jude Bellingham is “surprising everybody” after the England midfielder broke a Real Madrid goalscoring record in a 4-2 win over Napoli in the UEFA Champions League.

The summer signing from Borussia Dortmund is the first player to score in each of his first four European games for Real, putting his side 2-1 up on their way to a result which sealed them top spot in Group C.

It was Bellingham’s 15th goal in 16 games, as the 20-year-old continues to take his move to the Spanish giants in his stride.

“It's surprising. I don't think anybody could have imagined his adaptation to this style of football, to this club," Real manager Ancelotti said.

"He surprises every day, in every game. Not just us, he's surprising everybody. [Bellingham] is a gift for football.

“His coach and his team-mates are delighted with him, and the fans are delighted with him, but everybody is delighted to see a player with this potential and this positive image."

Speaking in a separate interview, Ancelotti also talked about how he did not expect Bellingham to be in such rich goalscoring form, telling Movistar Plus that he is “spectacular at getting into the box - he comes into the box like a motorbike”.

Bellingham has been working his way back from a shoulder injury which meant he missed England’s final Euro 2024 qualifiers.

Although his breakthrough at the Bernabeu has been spectacular, Ancelotti is keen to avoid comparisons with club legends like Zinedine Zidane - despite the midfielder taking the France great’s former No. 5 shirt.

"It's difficult to compare two different generations," Ancelotti said.

"What I see is [Bellingham's] ability to get into the box. Zidane didn't have that. And the individual quality which Zidane had, Bellingham doesn't have.

"But that's modern football. Modern football requires physical players like Bellingham, who can cover a lot of the pitch quickly."

Despite Bellingham’s impressive start, Ancelotti joked he is not getting everything right: "He's adapted well to the dressing room. He has to improve his Spanish. As I've said many times, nobody is perfect!"

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