Former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed that Jude Bellingham turned down the opportunity to join the Red Devils.
Jude Bellingham has been the talk of the town of late because of the kind of form he has been in since joining Real Madrid this summer. The 20-year-old has made a great start to life in Madrid. But, he could have joined Manchester United back in the day, however, the England international turned down that opportunity.
Former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has talked about how he wanted to bring Bellingham to Old Trafford back in the summer of 2020. But, the English midfielder chose not to play for the Manchester-based club.
Bellingham came through the ranks at Birmingham and made it to their first team back in 2019. He featured in a total of 44 matches for the English club and contributed towards six goals. The 20-year-old was absolutely sensational in his first-ever season for the senior team.
And, his impressive performances resulted in a lot of interest from across Europe. Some of the biggest clubs in world football wanted to sign him but he decided to join Borussia Dortmund in order to get regular first-team minutes and develop his game further.
Before he joined Dortmund in the summer of 2020, Manchester United wanted to sign him. Solskjaer was keen on having him in his ranks because he was well aware of the kind of talent Bellingham possessed. He was the Norwegian manager’s top target. But, unfortunately, they couldn’t convince the 20-year-old about the move. He ended up choosing Dortmund over the Red Devils.
Ole Solskjær tells @AndyMitten: “We wanted Jude Bellingham at Manchester United badly — he was one of my top targets at the club”. 🔴✨ #MUFC
“Jude chose Dortmund and I respect that”, said to @TheAthleticFC. pic.twitter.com/SqHTJZ9bNE
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 20, 2023
Solskjaer on wanting to sign Bellingham at United via Fabrizio Romano: “We wanted Jude Bellingham at Manchester United badly — he was one of my top targets at the club”.
“Jude chose Dortmund and I respect that.”
In his three seasons in Germany, the 20-year-old featured in a total of 132 matches and contributed towards 49 goals. Bellingham even wore the captain’s armband in a few fixtures for the team in yellow.
Ever since the end of the last season, it was pretty clear that the former Birmingham midfielder was now ready to join a European elite and he did make the move to Real Madrid in the recently concluded transfer window. The England international has already featured in five La Liga matches for the Los Blancos and has racked up six goal contributions.
