Bellingham had only played in the Championship before his arrival in Dortmund and had to deal with incredibly high expectations from the get-go.
Dortmund paid roughly the same transfer fee for him as they did for his brother Jude when he joined in 2020.
Jude was deemed a generational talent at the age of 17 after only one full season with Birmingham City. Meanwhile, Jobe – albeit gifted – spent several years at Birmingham and Sunderland. He needed a longer runway to get to Dortmund.
And yet Dortmund made sure to pound the narrative that history could repeat itself.
The three-year-long run with Jude was a win-win for everyone. He almost immediately established himself as one of the most promising midfielders in the Bundesliga and eventually left for Real Madrid after a great spell for a record transfer fee.
Perhaps expectations for the younger brother were too high in August, especially following Bellingham’s performances at the Club World Cup. The downfall happened quickly, but so can his rise.
In the games following the loss to Bayern Munich, Bellingham has started to impress more and more, even though he is still only a substitute in the Bundesliga.
He played 120 minutes against Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Cup, as Dortmund powered through to the penalty shootout on enemy soil and advanced to the next round.
Even his effort against Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Friday did not go unnoticed. Dortmund tried to sail home with a 1-0 lead and Bellingham made sure to deny a few of Augsburg’s offensive attempts.
“I believe things go faster than even I could have imagined, because the lad has really a lot of quality,” Kovac said after Friday’s game.
There is a realistic chance that with time, Bellingham will become a regular starter in Dortmund’s central midfield.
Sabitzer has not set the world on fire as a playmaker. And Gross, while respected and always reliable – as Brighton fans can attest – is 34 and cannot go full force every game anymore.
Dortmund might not get a Jude-like fairytale, but with patience, the younger Bellingham could turn into a success story.
