Liverpool supporters finally saw their team beat Real Madrid during an enjoyable game at Anfield on Wednesday.
Los Blancos have been the scourge of the Reds on many occasion over recent years, even beating them in two Champions League finals since 2018.
As well as those sobering defeats on the pitch, Real have got one over on Liverpool a few too many times in the transfer market, too.
The biggest of those defeats for the Reds arguably came in 2023, when Jude Bellingham opted against a move to Anfield in favour of joining Madrid.
Wednesday represented the first time Bellingham had come up against Liverpool since snubbing their advances, and, indeed, was his time ever facing the Reds.
Having tasted defeat on his maiden trip to Merseyside, Bellingham gave his verdict on what he’d seen from Liverpool immediately after the game.
Jude Bellingham of Real Madrid during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD5 match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid C.F. at Anfield...
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Jude Bellingham gives Liverpool verdict
Liverpool fans would have loved Bellingham to have become their player in 2023. There’s no doubt about that.
But after Bellingham claimed Real Madrid are ‘another level‘ ahead of the match, there will have been a few wanting to see him put in his place on Wednesday.
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Happily, that’s exactly what happened, with goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo doing the damage for Liverpool. And speaking to TNT Sports after the final whistle, Bellingham admitted that the Reds were simply too good for Madrid.
“I think to be fair from the first minute they probably just took control of the game,” said the England international.
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“We never really maximised the spells that we had in possession. When we got the ball back we probably tried to force the counter attack a few too many times and turned it over so much that they manage to keep control. Defensively they kept us in a place that we couldn’t really harm them.
“I think they were more up for it than us, which is really disappointing to say,” Bellingham added.
“It’s a bad result against probably the best performing team in Europe. It’s no disgrace to come here and lose but we are disappointed in how we performed.”
Jude Bellingham fails to shine against Liverpool
In fairness to Bellingham, he did look like one of the Madrid players who were up for it on Wednesday night.
The former Birmingham City youngster did show some nice moments but by and large he did not impact the game as much as might have been expected.
Pass Accuracy % Chances Created Tackles Won Duels Won % Successful Dribbles
Jude Bellingham vs Liverpool 87 2 0/2 33 0/2
As he alludes to, Liverpool were able to keep he and his teammates at arms length comfortably for much of the evening.
For Reds supporters, it will have been something of a cathartic experience to see Bellingham humbled on their own patch.
In Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Curtis Jones, Liverpool showed that they never really needed him anyway. Better luck next time, Jude.
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