Jude Bellingham showed remarkable humility after England’s goalless stalemate with Ghana, insisting he shouldn’t have picked up the Man of the Match award.
The Real Madrid star was handed the honour following a frustrating night in Boston, but he wasn’t having any of it.
“I didn’t deserve it, to be honest,” Bellingham told FIFA’s in-house media. “It probably should have gone to one of their lads who defended so well.”
The 22-year-old admitted he struggled to make an impact against Ghana’s stubborn defensive wall.
Jude Bellingham did not look impressed after winning the man of the match award
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FIFA
“Had a couple of moments, it was hard to get into the game and I’m grateful for whoever voted, but it probably should have gone to one of their lads who defended so well. So fair play to them.”
Things got heated at the break when Bellingham clashed with Ghana manager Carlos Queiroz near the touchline.
The incident kicked off after Bellingham’s late challenge on Jerome Opoku close to Ghana’s technical area. Words were exchanged, and Morgan Rogers had to step in to pull his teammate away while Ghana substitutes held back their veteran boss.
“He had a bad reaction with some bad names, that’s why the story started,” Queiroz explained afterwards. “My intention was to tell him to cool down with that tackle. It could be a second yellow card, a red card, because he went with his foot against my player.”
The former Manchester United assistant added: “Football is something for brave people – not for people dancing in tuxedos.”
Jude Bellingham clashed with Ghana players as England struggled to break them down | GETTY
Thomas Tuchel played down the confrontation, insisting: “No one got under our skin. Jude stood up for himself and for us as a team.”
It turns out this disappointing result fits a rather familiar pattern for the Three Lions.
England have now drawn their second group match at four consecutive major tournaments, stretching back to that goalless affair against Scotland at Euro 2020.
Bellingham acknowledged the trend with a knowing smile: “Like always it is second game fever isn’t it with England. Win the first one, do well, and then draw the second one. But it’s okay.”
Thomas Tuchel’s side had looked brilliant in their 4-2 victory over Croatia just days earlier, with Bellingham himself grabbing England’s third goal.
But Ghana’s deep defensive setup, which assistant coach Anthony Barry described as “deep, deep, deep – probably deeper than we expected,” completely stifled England’s attacking threat.
Despite the setback, Bellingham urged everyone to keep things in perspective.
England were held to a 0-0 draw against Ghana in their second World Cup match | GETTY
“It’s important for us and for you guys as well, not to get too negative, not to get too het up on it,” he said. “We’ll prepare, we’ll watch the footage, see where we could have been better and prepare for Panama. So, no worries, no stress, no drama at all.”
England remain top of Group L and can secure first place with a win against Panama on Saturday.
Declan Rice echoed the calm approach, telling the BBC: “Loads of top nations drew their first game, so there’s no need to be negative. We need to stay positive, keep going and recover before the next match.”
Ghana’s disciplined display has boosted their own knockout hopes as they prepare to face Croatia.
