At just 18 years old, Jobe Bellingham has overall had a very impressive season with Sunderland and has gathered interest from clubs all over the world - many of which will be hoping they can reciprocate the signing Borussia Dortmund made when they acquired his brother Jude Bellingham from Birmingham.
Having failed in an attempt to land Jack Clarke in January, Lazio have been linked with a number of Championship players over the past few months and most notably, Jobe. According to Italian outlet Gazzetta Dello Sport, the Serie A club are extremely keen to open talks with the natural midfielder and reports elsewhere suggest they have already ‘started to move’ on him ahead of what will be a busy summer transfer window for the Black Cats.
Jobe has registered seven goals and an assist this season having played in an array of different positions. He’s played as a deep midfielder, an attacking midfielder and most recently as the squad's primary striker. His best position is somewhere in midfield and most predominantly as a box-to-box midfielder. The stats from this season demonstrate that he has the ability to excel there with the young star in the 98th percentile for pass completion which, given his age, is a remarkable stat and just showcases the quality he can possess in a midfield position. With his seven goals, he’s also Sunderland’s second top scorer behind Jack Clarke which again shows that he has multiple areas of the game that he can perform well at.
KEEP HOLD OF HIM
Easier said than done when clubs like Lazio ask the question but keeping hold of Jobe will be a huge coup for the club. Having only just turned 18 this season, he has years and years ahead of him to continue his development and for Jobe, there’s not many better clubs to do that at when it comes to Sunderland. Many have described him as an average Championship player, which sounds harsh, but in a way is a complement to the teenager to have already established himself as a solid first team player. He will only get better. His exposure to first team football this season and arguably even to the criticism he has faced, will only aid him in his development.
TAKE CARE OF HIM
Jobe has played a lot this season. I mean, A LOT! And whilst that can be seen as a positive, Sunderland have to be careful with him as to not overplay him. He’s still young. He’s still developing. As seen when he returned after the international break, he benefited massively from a small spell away from the team with a chance to recover and recharge. The following game against Cardiff, he was outstanding and got his name on the scoresheet. He looked refreshed and raring to go and this is something that will need to be monitored next season, he needs time out of the team occasionally. With the right management, he can be a crucial player next season and will only have improved from this year.
