Jude Bellingham left out of Real Madrid squad for Real Sociedad clash

Jude Bellingham will sit out Real Madrid's La Liga clash with Real Sociedad on Friday night after being left out of the squad for the trip to Anoeta.

Bellingham has been Madrid's leading man throughout 2023/24, scoring his 21st goal of the season to beat Barcelona in stoppage time last weekend.

During his pre-match press conference, manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted Bellingham had been dealing with a stomach problem but insisted the midfielder had the chance to feature against Sociedad.

But when the club published the travelling squad for Friday's game, Bellingham's name was nowhere to be seen.

Brazilian forward Rodrygo is battling the flu but has been included, whereas left-back Ferland Mendy has been rested.

"[Mendy] is fine but I prefer that he stays working for the Champions League," Ancelotti said.

Earlier this week, Bellingham collected the 2024 Laureus World Sports Breakthrough of the Year award. Helpfully, the ceremony was held at the iconic Palacio de Cibeles in Madrid. It gave recognition to his impact since a €134m transfer from Borussia Dortmund last summer, arguably exceeding expectations even with a price tag that makes him among the most expensive players in history.

Scoring that winner against Barcelona last weekend was not the first time he had done that this season, achieving a similar feat when he netted twice – including the stoppage time winner – in a 2-1 victory over the Catalans at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys back in October.

Bellingham’s goalscoring, which has made up for Madrid’s lack of a recognised striker, is something that has been added to his game this season thanks to a more advanced midfield role that has drawn comparisons to 2007 Ballon d'Or winner Kaka. His 17 league goals this season is already more than the rest of his career combined across the EFL Championship and Bundesliga.

Thanks to his Clasico goal at the Bernabeu, Bellingham is also now the all-time leading English goalscorer in Real Madrid history. His 21 goal-haul so far is already better than the previous record of 20, jointly held by Laurie Cunningham (66 games) and David Beckham (159 games). Michael Owen scored 16 times during his sole season, while Steve McManaman got 14.

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