German media all say the same thing about ex-Sunderland Jobe Bellingham’s Champions League display

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Jobe Bellingham has received his fair share of criticism since leaving Sunderland for Borussia Dortmund, as the German media reacts to his latest Champions League display.

The 20-year-old was directly culpable for Michael Olise’s match-winner in the 2-1 loss against Bayern Munich as his botched clearance deflected off the Frenchman and into the back of the net.

Indeed, Bellingham was slammed for his “poor” performance last time out in the Champions League, but Niko Kovac kept his faith in the summer signing and selected him to start against Copenhagen.

And the ex-Sunderland star is seemingly taking steps in the right direction to resurrect his turbulent start in Germany after the 4-2 win at the Parken Stadium.

Jobe Bellingham takes one step forward in the Champions League

After ten outings across all competitions without a single goal contribution, Bellingham broke his duck with two assists against Copenhagen.

He set up goals for former Premier League duo Felix Nmecha and Fabio Silva in Denmark as the midfielder aims to move past his disastrous Bayern cameo.

German media outlet Ran awarded Bellingham a high 2/5 match rating, writing: “Dortmund’s ‘problem boy’ receives Kovac’s trust in Copenhagen, starts in place of Sabitzer, and is certainly convincing. He was directly involved in two key moments, providing the assist for Nmecha’s 1-0 goal and for substitute Fabio Silva’s 4-1 goal, and he also performed convincingly off the ball.”

Sport 1 gave a slightly lower 2.5/5 rating but also agreed his performance was a positive sign: “Clearly on the up! He made his unfortunate move from the weekend a thing of the past in the first half: He set up Nmecha’s opening goal (20′) – the youngster’s first goal involvement for BVB this season. He tried not to make any mistakes, without taking any major risks.

“He subsequently became increasingly bolder, even taking a shot from distance (74′). He also fired from distance before Silva made it 4-1 – so the assist also belongs to him. Overall, a very decent performance.”

However, Spox awarded the lowest rating with a 3/5 and believes Bellingham has not yet ironed out the mistakes after his headed clearance forced Waldemar Anton’s own goal: “He got off to a good start in just his fourth start of the season and set up Nmecha’s goal.

“The equalizer brought back memories of the Bayern game at the weekend, as the young Englishman didn’t clear the ball consistently and headed it straight into Moukoko’s feet. He also could have had a few more creative moments. He also added a decent long-range finish in the 73rd minute and put in a great effort before the 4-1. All in all, a step in the right direction.”

As previously revealed by TBR Football, Dortmund have no concerns with Bellingham despite ongoing speculation regarding his future.

Bellingham was wanted by Premier League clubs prior to his move to the Signal Iduna Park, and now the midfielder is beginning to showcase the form that earned him his £30 million move to the Bundesliga.

Niko Kovac reserves praise for Jobe Bellingham

The Dortmund boss publicly defended Bellingham following his costly mistake against Bayern, and now Kovac has ensured the midfielder receives his flowers.

Speaking in his post-match interview with DAZN, Kovac singled out Bellingham as his players responded with a resounding second-half display in Denmark.

“We had to figure out our opponents. In the first half, we were too slow. We were simply taking too many touches of the ball. The circulation was too slow. We had the quality to react at half-time. The lads put it into practice straight away, and at the end of the day, we deserved to win.

“You need something like that (the penalty to make it 2-1) to give you a second wind. But then you could see that we have very good players who can make a lot out of a little. At the end of the day, I’m very happy for Felix (Nmecha), who scored his first brace in his career today.

“The team did very well in the second half. I have to single out Jobe (Bellingham) because he had a very good game today.”