Jude Bellingham born to play at Real Madrid, Nacho says

Posted Thursday, September 21, 2023 by ESPN

Nacho said Jude Bellingham "was born to play for Real Madrid" after the midfielder's sixth goal in six games gave the LaLiga giants a 1-0 Champions League win over Union Berlin in their opening game in Group C.

Bellingham pounced on a loose ball in the six-yard box in the 94th minute on Wednesday night at the Santiago Bernabeu -- after Federico Valverde's shot was deflected -- to rob the Bundesliga side of a point on their competition debut.

The England international has found the net in five of his six Real Madrid appearances so far, only drawing a blank in Sunday's 2-1 league win over Real Sociedad.

"I think Jude was born to play for Real Madrid," club captain Nacho told Movistar. "We're lucky to have him here with us. Let's hope he keeps scoring goals."

Bellingham's strike against Union Berlin was the second time he's won a game for Madrid in added time at the Bernabeu, after his 95th minute winner against Getafe on Sept. 2.

"We were patient," Bellingham told Movistar. "We knew we'd get chances at the end of the game. We had to move the ball, find spaces. We kept going, we showed a great mentality, great togetherness."

Bellingham scored 14 goals for Borussia Dortmund in all of last season, and already has six this campaign.

"Around the pitch I want to be an artist, I want to try to create stuff for my teammates, but when the ball goes into the box I want to be a killer," he said. "That's what's going to win us games. Hopefully it continues."

Coach Carlo Ancelotti has picked Bellingham in a more advanced, No. 10 role to maximise his goalscoring.

"Bellingham has quality, that's very important, and he has luck," Ancelotti said in his post-match news conference. "This goal was similar to the one against Getafe. He always arrives at the right time. He's smarter than the rest."