England ‘not ready for a Black superstar’ like Jude Bellingham, says Ian Wright – The Athletic
Former England international and Arsenal striker Ian Wright says his country is “not ready for a Black superstar” like Jude Bellingham.
Bellingham’s place in the England team has been the subject of intense discourse following the final round of World Cup qualifiers, in which the 22-year-old appeared as a substitute in the 2-0 win against Serbia and then started in the 2-0 victory over Albania.
Bellingham was substituted off following England’s second goal against Albania in the 84th minute and his reaction to that withdrawal, as well as his perceived involvement in the celebration of Harry Kane’s headed effort, attracted some criticism. One national newspaper in the UK subsequently ran a back page with the headline ‘Leave Jude At Home’.
England head coach Thomas Tuchel was asked in his post-game press conference about the idea that Bellingham had not celebrated Kane’s goal — videos showed this was not accurate — and his reaction to being taken off, which the German said he would “review”.
“What they said about Jude not celebrating was complete fabrication, it was a lie,” Wright said on The Overlap podcast, released on Thursday. “What they’ve tried to do is build something, because England have won so easily, they’ve not conceded any goals. They needed something else to pile on top of the narrative.”
Wright scored 113 Premier League goals for Arsenal and West Ham United during his career and has been a regular pundit for the BBC, ITV and Sky Sports since retiring (Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
England had already qualified for the World Cup ahead of their two fixtures this month. Bellingham missed the September and October camps due to a shoulder injury and his subsequent recovery, but had previously started England’s first three qualifiers in March and June.
The Real Madrid midfielder previously starred for his country at the European Championship in 2024, starting every game as England reached the final and contributing two goals and one assist.
Bellingham’s reaction after his late equaliser in England’s last-16 victory over Slovakia at that Euros, shouting, “Who else?” following his celebration, also attracted criticism. “Playing for England is an enjoyable feeling but it’s also a lot of pressure — you hear people talk a lot of rubbish,” Bellingham said when asked about the celebration after the game. “It’s nice that when you deliver, you can give them a little bit back.”
In March, Tuchel described Bellingham as one of his team’s leaders and a “pleasure to work with”, but said the former Birmingham City player needed to be more “disciplined”.
In August, Tuchel apologised for using the word “repulsive” to describe Bellingham’s on-field behaviour and advising him to direct the aggressive side of his game “the right way”.
“He has the fire. I don’t want to dim this down,” Tuchel had said on talkSPORT in June. “But the fire comes also with some attributes that can intimidate you. Maybe even as a team-mate. And you see sometimes the explosion towards referees and the anger in his game. If he can channel this in the right way and we can help him in this, then for sure he has something that we need. He has a certain edge that is hard to find.”
“I’m worried for Jude simply because he’s somebody that they can’t control,” Wright, who scored nine goals in 33 appearances for England, continued. “You can’t control him. Coming off the, ‘Who else?’ and what he’s done at the World Cup (European Championship), he’s showing people that ‘I’m here, I’m Black and proud and ready to go’.
“I’m an Englishman, even though when I was younger people used to say to me, ‘Yeah but you’re not really English are you?’ — ‘Yeah I’m English.’ I don’t think they’re ready for a Black superstar who can move like Jude’s moving, they can’t touch him, like I just said. He goes out there, performs, does what he does, says, ‘Who else?’ It’s too uppity for these people.
“I’ll put it in football terms. They love N’Golo Kante, he’s a humble Black man, he gets on with what he’s doing. I’m not saying he’s an Uncle Tom or anything, that’s how his personality is. But if you get a (Paul) Pogba or a Bellingham, and you get that kind of energy, that does not sit well with the people, that kind of person. For someone like Jude, for some reason, frightens people because of his capability and the inspiration he can give.
“It’s something that you’re taught as a Black man when you’re going out there, you just want to do the best you can and keep your head down and be, for want of a better word, a humble f—— slave. This is dragging up from that kind of energy. Because if you are outspoken, Black, playing to that level and not caring, that frightens certain people, and that’s what’s going to happen with Jude.”
Wright added that he had messaged Bellingham before the England game, telling him to “Be ready”. To which, Wright said, Bellingham replied, “Ready for what?” “Listen, it’s coming and I’m here, I’m going to make sure I’m on this side.”
Bellingham returns to club action with Madrid, for whom he has scored 41 goals and provided 29 assists in 111 appearances, this Sunday with a La Liga game against Elche. He will not link up with his country again until the next international window in March.
