No pressure, Jude! Carlo Ancelotti reveals midfielder Bellingham is Real Madrid's replacement for striker Karim Benzema

Posted Thursday, August 24, 2023 by Goal.com

Carlo Ancelotti heaped praise on Jude Bellingham and claimed that the English midfielder has been tasked with replacing star striker Karim Benzema.

WHAT HAPPENED? The English international has taken La Liga by storm having already scored three times in his first two appearances for his new club. Madrid have not signed a replacement for Karim Benzema, who left to join Saudi Arabia side Al-Ittihad.

In the absence of a proper number nine, Ancelotti has tweaked his formation a bit this season as he is deploying Bellingham as a number 10 just behind two split strikers.

WHAT THEY SAID: Asked about Madrid's refusal to sign a striker after Benzema's exit, Ancelotti told Radio Serie A: "We believe that the arrival of Bellingham covers the absence of Karim. [Bellingham] is a serious, mature boy with a lot of quality. What he is doing is not surprising to those of us who know him, what is surprising is that he is only 20 years old."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The player himself is enjoying his time at Los Blancos as he recently claimed that he is '10 times better' at Real Madrid after an apparently acrimonious Borussia Dortmund exit.