Jude Bellingham would “take the p*ss” in Birmingham training before heading back to school because he had “science next”, says Troy Deeney.

Teenager broke through at St Andrew’sPotential was clear for all to seeNow one of world football’s hottest prospects

WHAT HAPPENED? The England international midfielder, who is currently starring at the 2022 World Cup, made a senior breakthrough at St Andrew’s when just 16 years of age, with his potential clear for all to see. He would regularly upstage more experienced team-mates in the West Midlands, with there confidence in his game that made it obvious he was destined to reach the very top.

WHAT THEY SAID: Current Birmingham striker Deeney has told The Sun of a precocious talent: “They did not just think Bellingham was going to be good, they simply KNEW he was going to be great. This was a kid who used to train with the first team either side of school lessons. At the age of 15, he was making hard-nosed professionals look stupid with his talent in training. He’d routinely take the p*ss out of them in a way that few kids would get away with — and then casually say, ‘Right, back to school . . . I’ve got science next’. But there was something about young Jude’s character that meant those senior pros did not resent him being the best player in training before he’d even made his first-team debut. There was a humility, an intelligence, a respect and a thirst for knowledge which made him stand out.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Bellingham left Birmingham for Borussia Dortmund in 2020 and, having gone on fill captaincy duties there while also impressing for England, his value is considered to have skyrocketed as talk of interest from Premier League heavyweights builds. Deeney added: “Jude is going to be England’s main man for a decade or more. Because he is playing for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, there’s been an element of Jude travelling under the radar with a lot of England fans. But this season, he has developed into a proper goalscoring box-to-box midfielder, scoring nine times for Dortmund. When Jude leaves Dortmund, quite possibly next summer, most of the world’s biggest clubs are going to be interested and, for me, the bidding can start at £150 million. He is in the Kylian Mbappe bracket — as good as that.”

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WHAT NEXT? Bellingham scored his first senior international goal for England in their 6-2 mauling of Iran in their 2022 World Cup opener and will be hoping to figure prominently in Gareth Southgate’s plans when the Three Lions face the United States on Friday.