Liverpool rivals seek ‘alternative’ to Jude Bellingham due to ‘too much competition’ in race for €100m star

Gareth Southgate’s England are through to the knockout stages of the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals where they will face Senegal after topping their group.

Meanwhile, the return of the Premier League gets closer with each passing day as Leeds United prepare to face Man City in the EFL Cup before taking on Aston Villa on Boxing Day. Not long after the January transfer window will open and clubs across the country can once again make moves to try and improve their squads.

The future of Borussia Dortmund and England star Jude Bellingham continues to be one of the biggest transfer talking points in world football and a new development could potentially have a significant impact on Liverpool’s chances of landing the 19-year old. Per a report from Marca, Real Madrid will now ‘expand their point of view’ and are monitoring Benfica ace Enzo Fernandez as there is ‘too much competition’ in the battle for his signature.

However, that’s not to say that Los Blancos have given up hope of signing the Birmingham native and the same report states that the Spanish outfit have made contact with Bellingham’s ‘entourage’ and are ‘taking all the necessary steps’ to bring him to the Bernabéu. The latest figure quoted that it would supposedly take to convince Dortmund to sell is said to be ‘upwards of 100 million euros’.

Bellingham is currently understood to be Liverpool’s ‘top transfer target’ for 2023 and recent reports have suggested that the Reds, despite current uncertainty over their ownership, have set aside a significant amount of cash to make the signing happen. However, as stated in the Marca article, competition is fierce for Bellingham and Liverpool’s biggest obstacle for his signature could very well be their Premier League rivals Manchester City.

Madrid, City and Liverpool are currently thought to be the three main contenders in the race to sign Bellingham but that could all change and Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham have all also been linked with the England star at one point or another over the past 12 to 18 months. Reds’ fans will get the chance to see the midfielder in action again for England on Sunday when they face Senegal in their World Cup first knockout round stage match.