Real Madrid fuming with England & Tuchel over Jude: Why did you call him up?!
.jpg)
Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 02.04.26. | 20:02
Bellingham did not clock a single minute on the pitch in the Three Lions' friendly matches against Uruguay and Japan, which provoked a fierce reaction from Santiago Bernabeu
For the first time since June 2024, England failed to triumph in two consecutive games. Back then, they played in the European Championship, where no rival is easy, and no victory is foregone.
However, a draw against Uruguay and a defeat to Japan in two friendly games, both played at Wembley? Something might be wrong among the Three Lions.
A flimsy excuse could be that Thomas Tuchel rotated a lot and significantly shuffled the team, trying to keep fresh players who clock 90 minutes for their respective clubs week after week.
One of those players was Jude Bellignham. Not because he plays a lot, but because he's recently recovered from a hamstring injury.
"I think it's too much of a risk. It looked very, very good, but we're still holding him back, to not take a risk," Tuchel told BBC Radio 5 Live via ESPN, ahead of England's clash against Japan, in which Jude sat out on the bench.
Four days earlier, against Uruguay, he was completely out of the squad, and it was enough to provoke Real Madrid's reaction.
Some would expect Los Blancos to be satisfied as their midfielder returned from international duty fit and uninjured, but it's actually the other way around - they are furious at Santiago Bernabeu!
🚨 Real Madrid didn’t get why England called Jude Bellingham to camp 🤔
— Baby🎶✨ (@KING_4CL) April 2, 2026
The club believes he’d have been better off training in Madrid 💪🏟️
Thomas Tuchel opted to rest him after a long-term injury 🛌⚡ @marca #donlosblancos pic.twitter.com/iViyBvmFuJ
According to Marca, the club wonders why was Bellingham called up in the first place, as he didn't clock a single minute in two games. Just to train? He could have done that in Madrid as well. This way, he traveled to England for nothing.
The 22-year-old missed 10 Los Blancos matches and has returned after a month and a half, clocking just 17 minutes in the Derbi Madrileno against Atletico Madrid. Those were his only minutes since the beginning of February, so Tuchel's stance is understandable.
Still, if the German knew all that, why did he call Bellingham up, indeed?
In the end, the truth lies somewhere in between, though Los Blancos are a bit hard to please. How come?
Think for a second about this scenario: Jude features for England against Uruguay or Japan and injures himself again.
Can you imagine Real Madrid's reaction in that case?