CONFIRMED: Dortmund target Bellingham 2.0

Borussia Dortmund are interested in Jobe Bellingham, the younger brother of Jude Bellingham, according to reports.

Bild’s chief reporter Christian Falk has posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, an update concerning the Sunderland player’s future..

He wrote: “Borussia Dortmund is interested in Jobe Bellingham (19/Sunderland). The Bosses believe that the “Mini-Bellingham” can make a similar impact as his brother in Dortmund and start a comparable career.”

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Jude left Dortmund in 2023 after an extremely successful tenure. He joined Real Madrid for a whopping €103 million and enjoyed a superb first season with Los Blancos, netting 19 goals and providing six assists in 28 La Liga games. His season has got off to a rocky start – like most of the Real Madrid side – but he is still considered to be one of the best in the world.

Now it’s thought that Jobe can follow in his brother’s footsteps, at least where Dortmund is concerned.

Like his older brother, the 19-year-old also started out at Birmingham City. He then made the move to Sunderland, who are pushing for an automatic promotion spot this season in the Championship. The Black Cats are top of the table with 31 points while Jobe has pitched in with two goals and one assist.

Sunderland are in a strong position to demand a sizeable fee for Bellingham, as he’s under contract until 2028. Reports suggest that Dortmund would need to pay roughly €23 million to offer Jobe a similar career path to the one his brother Jude embarked on.

What has Sunderland’s manager said?

Via the Sunderland Echo, Black Cats head coach Regis Le Bris said of the future of his younger players, including Jobe and Chris Rigg.

“The question is not solved because we do not know what might happen in the future. It is not a subject that is on the table [currently] because that is not the reality of the situation. But I think with these players, they are involved in the project, and they know that they can improve in this team.

He continued: “So, from a personal perspective, it is good for them, and also to be part of this journey as well. It is rare to have this. Sometimes, you can go a whole career without having these elements – where you are in a club, you like that club, you are improving and you believe in a very interesting journey. I am confident for the future.