Jude Bellingham portrayal in Adidas advert ‘at odds with ethos’ according to England teammates

The portrayal of Jude Bellingham in the “Hey Jude” Adidas advert was ‘at odds with the collective ethos’ according to some members of the England camp at Euro 2024.

Bellingham came into the tournament on the back of an oustanding first season for Real Madrid, after which he was named La Liga’s best player as Los Blancos claimed the double.

His overhead kick to keep England in the tournament against Slovakia was an example of what the former Birmingham midfielder can produce but his star quality often failed to shine through in Germany.

‘The national team’s saviour’

And a report in The Athletic claims his teammates weren’t too happy about him being ‘portrayed as the national team’s saviour’ in the Adidas advert which played during breaks in the ITV coverage.

While it was ‘well received by the public many within the camp felt the tone was at odds with the collective ethos of Southgate’s England’, and the report adds that ‘his demeanour was the subject of murmurs’.

Bellingham’s spiky response to criticism during the tournament – which he referred to as a “pile-on” – was perhaps due to him being ‘acutely aware of every word said or written about him in the media.

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A ‘heartbreaking’ defeat

The Real Madrid star said that defeat to Spain in the final was “heartbreaking” and insisted that “at some point we do have to deliver”.

He told reporters: “We sacrificed a lot throughout the last week, it’s so tough these days with the crazy schedules and then coming together for the end of the season, for one last tournament, it’s difficult on the body. Mentally, and physically you are exhausted but for our country, we wanted to give everything and then to lose in that way is really cruel.

“Again, we probably didn’t play our best game but there were definitely some good moments. We felt like we got back into the game and then to kind of be sucker-punched with the late goal. It’s heartbreaking. We all wanted nothing more than to make history and to make the people of England proud and we haven’t managed to do it. We didn’t quite deliver. There are reasons for that. I’m sure as a team and going forward we will analyse it.”

He added, “But yeah, I think, it’s still a young group. It’s really disappointing because at some point we do have to deliver. But there are experiences and there are things from this tournament going forward. I suppose if you look at everything negatively, nothing will ever change. It’s important we pick the positives and the negatives together and find a way to one day get England over the line.”