Jobe Bellingham’s £25m decision gets easier as director sends clear message to Sunderland star
Premier League-bound Sunderland is rapidly becoming England’s destination of choice for young, ambitious talent looking for the sort of first-team minutes they may struggle to get elsewhere.
Eliezer Mayenda chose Sunderland over Paris Saint-Germain, Marseille and Lyon back in 2023, for instance. What a decision that has proven to be.
It was Mayenda who rifled in Sunderland’s leveller during the play-off final comeback against Sheffield United on Saturday; the Black Cats defying the odds and even history itself as that Wembley hoodoo was put to bed for good.
Director Kristjaan Speakman – a massive influence behind the club’s highly-successful transfer policy – said it best when describing the signing of Jobe Bellingham in that £3 million deal from Birmingham City.
It was, he said, ‘a massive endorsement of what we are doing’. Proof that young, ambitious players like Bellingham were looking at Wearside and feeling that this was a place where their potential could be fulfilled.
Now, as Eintracht Frankfurt look to beat Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig to Bellingham’s signature, Speakman’s opposite number at the Commerzbank Arena is likely to use similar rhetoric in his attempts to convince the 19-year-old against following in Jude’s yellow and black footsteps.
Director explains why Jobe Bellingham would benefit in leaving Sunderland for Frankfurt
In fact, as avid Bundesliga viewers will explain, while Borussia Dortmund remain feted across Europe for setting Erling Haaland, Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham on their way, Eintracht Frankfurt arguably boast a better track record in recent years when it comes to turning potential into something more tangible.
Omar Marmoush joined Manchester City to the tune of £60 million in January. That FA Cup final penalty miss aside, the prolific Egyptian has largely picked up where he left off in Germany.
William Pacho will be one of the first names on the PSG team sheet for this weekend’s Champions League decider. Randal Kolo Muani will also get a winners’ medal if Luis Enrique can see off Inter Milan.
It seems like only a matter of time, meanwhile, before Hugo Ekitike becomes one of the most expensive strikers in football history.
As sporting director Markus Krosche explains, via the official Eagles website, Eintracht Frankfurt have also proven themselves capable of providing a ‘very good platform for young players’. A bigger platform than on offer at Sunderland, too, with Champions League football up for grabs.
“We reached the Champions League. Third place in the Bundesliga is an outstanding achievement and a historic end to a season,” Krosche said after Frankfurt secured a seat amongst Europe’s elite for 2024/25. “The way this very young team played football was also outstanding.
“We have a very young team with a lot of development potential, and we want to keep it together as best we can. [Qualifying for the Champions League can] help to convince players.
“But for us, that is no longer so crucial because we have offered a very good platform for young players in recent years. Our passion, power, energy as a club and the location in general [one of the biggest cities in Germany] these are all very good characteristics.”
Bellingham visited Frankfurt’s stadium after play-off final win
Frankfurt not only guarantee game time, they also offer their most vaunted talents the chance to take the next step when it presents itself. As Krosche explained when discussing Ekitike’s future recently, Frankfurt will not stand in his way if acceptable offers from Europe’s A-list clubs arrive.
“Young players see that they can develop with us, get playing time and play internationally,” the director adds.
“They know that we have the courage to let young players play. The Champions League is no longer the deciding factor as to why players decide for or against us.
“But of course it is very good to be able to offer it.”
Krosche held ‘intensive’ discussions with the £25 million-rated Jobe Bellingham during a tour around the Frankfurt facilities on Monday, per Hessenchau.
One suspects that many of the words the director said during those conversations can be copied and pasted from his end-of-season speech.
EFL Analysis understands that Borussia Dortmund still believe they are in pole position.
Manchester United and Crystal Palace are interested too, though a move to Germany appears the most likely scenario as things stand.
