I coached Jude Bellingham for England - here is why I always knew he was going to be a superstar

Jude Bellingham is expected to be in Thomas Tuchel's starting line-up when England take on Mexico in the last-16 of the World Cup tomorrow morning

Jude Bellingham was always destined to be a superstar - and now he could become one of the most successful players in the history of English football. That’s the view of Bellingham’s former England youth coach Richie Kyle, who revealed how the midfielder was wise beyond his teenage years.

The 23-year-old quickly rose to stardom after breaking into Birmingham City’s senior squad in 2019 at the age of just 16. After making just 44 appearances for the Championship club, Borussia Dortmund snapped him up in 2020, where he further enhanced his reputation as one of the best young players in the world.

Bellingham then went on to become the world's third most-expensive teenager when he completed a move to Real Madrid in July 2023 worth an initial €103m (£88.3m). Wanted by several of Europe's top clubs, including Manchester City and Liverpool, Bellingham opted to move to the Spanish giants, where he has since won the Champions League and La Liga.

As well as impressing at club level, the Stourbridge-born midfielder has also excelled for his country and has already amassed two goals and an assist ahead of England's last-16 World Cup game against Mexico tomorrow. And former PE teacher Kyle has revealed what made Bellingham stand out as a future superstar at 16, even though he was in a very talented group that featured a number of current Premier League stars.

"Jude is one of the most unique players I have ever come across," the current Bolton Wanderers assistant head coach told Mirror Football. "I got him at 16 with Kevin Betsy and we took this group through to Under-17s until Covid hit, but in that group were Jude and Jamal Musiala; they both played centre-midfield.

Get the latest World Cup 2026 news in your inbox with our Make Football Great Again newsletter

"Then you had Levi Colwill, Jarell Quansah, Tino Livramento and Harvey Elliott, so the group was ridiculous, really, especially when you look back now.

"But Jude was a man beyond his years at 16. He was so mature. You come across a lot of these kids now and they aren't necessarily shy, but they can't communicate.

"I have always found that communicating is becoming less and less due to social media and due to technology, but Jude was just a freak; it was like speaking to a 28-year-old sometimes.

"And that was just him off the bench. Even when we were doing reviews after games, he would stand up and tell the group what we should have done and how we can improve.

"It was his maturity off the pitch, but on it he was just an athletic specimen. He was not necessarily bigger than everyone else, but it was just his mobility.

"He had the athleticism to get box-to-box, and every tournament that we went to there were European scouts looking at Jude and other players as well, but Jude was always the one who stood out and you thought would get to the top.

"It was more a case of how quick he would get there, and I wasn’t surprised he got to Real Madrid as quickly as he did.

"Do I think there is more to come? I have total faith in his ability and he could be one of the most successful players in the history of English football if he wants to be."