A former Arsenal scout revealed his interest in Jude Bellingham joining Arsenal before the current England star joined current club Borussia Dortmund.
Bellingham is still only 19 years old, but he has already made more than 150 first-team appearances in his career and most recently shone for England in the 2022 World Cup.
Liverpool, Manchester City and Real Madrid have all been closely tracking the midfielder, with Dortmund expected to seek him for €150m (£134m) when the time finally comes to sell. Manchester United were also very keen in 2020, but Bellingham went instead to Dortmund.
Dortmund are now still keen to convince him to stay for another year until 2024. While they won’t stand in his way if he decides to move on, there is no clause in his contract that means they have rights to demand a high fee that reflects his full market value.
But things really could have been different if Arsenal had pushed their way earlier.
Former Arsenal scout Francis Kajigau spoke of his interest in Bellingham when the young prodigy was still at boyhood club Birmingham. The problem for Arsenal, even then, was the high price tag – Dortmund’s eventual transfer came with a price tag of £25m plus add-ons.
“I saw him for the first time when he was 16,” Kajigao said. like.
“I wanted to sign him for Arsenal, but it was already too expensive.
“It’s very good. What is clear is that if the club pays that much [€120m] Lanzo [Fernandez]Someone will also pay for Bellingham.”
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