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Friday, March 29, 2024

Jude Bellingham reflects on first England goal & dominant World Cup victory

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England midfielder Jude Bellingham has admitted his delight at opening his account for the Three Lions in Monday’s dominant 6-2 victory over Iran.

The 19-year-old became just the second teenager in England history to score at a World Cup, following in the footsteps of Michael Owen, as he headed the Three Lions ahead following an excellent cross from Luke Shaw.

It was Bellingham’s tenth goal of the season for club and country, and after the game, he confessed that adding more goals was a key part of his plans for the current campaign.

“I told you I was saving it [scoring his first for England]! It was a really good day for us. I think six goals in a World Cup game is really impressive regardless of who you play against,” he told BBC Sport.

“They came out really well, they were really strong, hard to break down, we didn’t have anything clear for a while. With more goals, we opened them up. The start was tough and we had to dig it out, even when we weren’t getting it all our way. It’s important we learn how to create chances against these kind of sides but we’re disappointed with the two goals to be honest.”

On his goal, Bellingham added: “I thought it had missed! It took ages to loop into the goal. I wanted to try to score more goals for Dortmund and England. To get in the right position, it was a brilliant ball and I was just there to flick it away. A really proud moment for me.”

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With three points in the bank, England now head into their next two games against Wales and the USA in a good position as they look to seal a spot in the knockout stages.

“The manager just said ‘enjoy the wins’ as it would’ve been a very different reaction had we not got that result,” Bellingham revealed. “But we’ve got to get ready for the next game and realise it will be a different challenge.

“When you win games, you’re at ease for a little bit longer and you know there’s a bit more [pressure] off you for the next two but we’ll still be at the same level and try to get two more wins as that’s how we want to carry our mentality into the rest of the tournament.”

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