Blog

Jude Bellingham opened up a lead at the top of LaLiga’s goal-scoring charts by scoring a brace against title-chasing dark horses Girona on Saturday. But the Real Madrid star, whose tally in the domestic competition now stands at a more than notable 16 goals in 24 games (21 in 32 across all competitions) was denied the chance to bag his first hat trick for Los Blancos after being forced to quit the field early with a suspected ankle injury.

Bellingham’s close-range finishes against Girona

Jude doubled Madrid’s lead on 34 minutes. Released by Vinicius, the England international raced onto a raking ball played between the visitors’ centre-backs, then with a drop of the shoulder, coolly jinked around keeper Paulo Gazzaniga to slot into an empty net. The Brazilian played a big part in Bellingham’s second – and Madrid’s third. After scampering into the Girona box, his shot was palmed away by Gazzaniga – straight to Jude, who had another leisurely finish to make it 3-0.

But just a couple of minutes later, he took a knock from Pablo Torre and signalled to the bench that he couldn’t continue. To rapturous applause from the home fans, Bellingham hobbled off to receive treatment on 56 minutes. Madrid meanwhile continued to add to the scoreline, as Rodrygo made it 4-0 just after the hour – effectively putting the game beyond Girona and opening up a gap at the top of the table. Ancelotti’s team go five points clear on 61 points with 14 games remaining.

Bellingham meanwhile will have his left ankle assessed by Madrid’s medical team and undergo further tests on Sunday. Over the next few hours we will learn whether he has suffered a minor injury – a scrape or sprain, or something more serious. Bellingham hasn’t missed many games this season and just one through injury – he sat out the league clash against Valencia in November with a shoulder injury as a precaution but was back for the next game. Ancelotti has rested him a couple of times in both LaLiga and the Champions League but while Jude is scoring freely and playing well, it would be crazy to reserve him.

The fixture calendar is starting to heat up for Real Madrid as the Champions League resumes this month. Ancelotti’s men are next in action on Tuesday, away at RB Leipzig in the first leg of the Round of 16. The squad will fly out for that game on Monday – with or without Bellingham. After playing in Germany, Madrid will have a few days to recover ahead of the next league game, across town in Vallecas as guests of Rayo a week tomorrow.