Jude Bellingham makes winning start to life at Real Madrid

Jude Bellingham makes winning start to life at Real Madrid as the Spanish giants battle back from two goals down to beat AC Milan 3-2 in California

Real Madrid battled back from two goals down to beat AC Milan 3-2 in their first pre-season friendly to hand Jude Bellingham the perfect start to his career with the Spanish giants.

Bellingham arrived at Madrid for a British record £113m last month, but has been made to wait for his debut for the club.

He was thrown straight into the starting line-up on Sunday night for the match in Pasadena, California, lining up as the most advanced player in a four-man midfield alongside Toni Kroos, Fede Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga.

But it was Milan who enjoyed the better of the first half with Fikayo Tomori giving them the lead in the 25th minute by getting on the end of Christian Pulisic’s cross before Luka Romero doubled their advantage three minutes before the break.

Carlo Ancelotti made several changes to his side at the interval, but kept Bellingham on as Madrid searched for a way back into the game.

It was Bellingham’s fellow midfielder Valverde who inspired the comeback, with the Uruguayan netting twice in as many minutes just before the hour mark to draw his side level.

With the score tied at 2-2, Bellingham was replaced in the 63rd minute by Nico Paz, having shown glimpses of the talent that is likely to make him a star at the Bernabeu.

It was left to substitute Vinicius Jnr to complete the turnaround, as the Brazilian winger found the net six minutes from time to put Madrid ahead for the first time in the game.

Speaking after the game, Ancelotti hailed Bellingham for his performance in his first outing.

‘Bellingham played very well and the team has to get used to his quality, which is unbelievable. His arrival into the box is hugely important for the team,’ he said.

‘He’s a fantastic player, very important for us because he’s a complete midfielder and he brings real pace and intensity to the game. 

He moves extremely well without the ball and he’s different to the other midfielders we have. He makes the most of the free space and adds another dimension to this squad, which is fantastic.’

Real Madrid are back in action twice more over the coming in week when they play Manchester United and Barcelona in Texas.

They will then fly over to Florida for the final game of their US tour against Juventus on August 3, before returning to Spain to prepare for the new LaLiga season.

Their first game of the new season at away at Athletic Bilbao, as they look to regain the title from Barcelona.