England star opens up on defeat by Spain and says he felt like the 'scapegoat'

Jude Bellingham says he felt like his world was crumbling down after England lost the European Championship final this summer.

The Real Madrid star has opened up on the agony he felt after the Three Lions’ defeat to Spain and said he felt like a scapegoat by fans and media, who he insists overstepped the mark of respect with some of their reporting.

Bellingham was speaking at Anfield ahead of the European champions’ clash with Liverpool on Wednesday night and insisted his ‘smile is back’ after a tough few months.

‘I’ve got to be honest I think I lost my smile a lot after the Euros when it came to playing for England because I felt like I was a little bit mistreated in comparison to what I contributed,’ said 21-year-old Galactico. ‘I felt like some of it was a bit harsh on me.

‘I felt I was a bit like the scapegoat. Maybe I was feeling a little bit sorry for myself. The last (England) camp with a lot of new faces really brought out the joy in my game again and I think you can see that in the two games.

‘In general, I haven’t lost my smile in the Madrid shirt. I am annoyed when we lose and I get frustrated but it is never a case of not being happy. I’m the luckiest lad in the world. I get to play week in week out for the biggest club in the world and represent my country. The smile is back.’

Bellingham, who was La Liga’s player of the season with 19 goals and six assists last term, has failed to replicate those dizzying heights this year with just two strikes. But he added: ‘For me pressure is not a problem.

‘I understand that playing for Real Madrid the expectations are going to be high for me wherever I go with the national team. I felt like I contributed some pretty big moments and, in the end, it kind of felt like the whole world was crumbling down on me after the Euros.

‘One of the big criticisms of me was that I didn’t speak to the media, I didn’t want to do press conferences. That was reported in a way that it made out I was above it, that’s not at that at all. I had some personal things going on.

‘Journalists went to go and see members of my family while I was at the tournament, went to visit my grandparents and that’s something I kept to myself. I don’t think that’s fair. I think that crosses the line of respect.

‘That’s where I took it a little bit personally and decided I was going to focus on football and try to let that do the talking instead of talking in the press to people who seemingly don’t respect me. That was a thing for me. Family comes first.

‘My nan didn’t want to leave her house for the whole summer, bless her. Maybe I should have communicated that before so people understood my situation but that was a little bit more personal and that’s why I decided to keep my mouth shut.

‘Criticism is part of the game and I know how to accept it but when it feels personal it does give you a bit of a new challenge to continue to shut people up. That’s something I’ve dealt with since I was very young, coming into the first team at Birmingham.

‘Then, people aren’t sure you’re ready. You take those little things and you try to use it as motivation. Like I say, it’s not something I’m really worried about. I understand it is part of the game.’