- Bellingham left Birmingham in summer
- Moved on to Sunderland
- Scores against former side
WHAT HAPPENED? Jobe Bellingham swapped Birmingham for Sunderland in the summer transfer window and scored against his former club on Saturday when the two sides met at the Stadium of Light. A corner sent in from the left was headed on to Bellingham, who cushioned a volley past goalkeeper John Ruddy to open the scoring.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Jude and Jobe both began their careers at Birmingham before moving on to Real Madrid and Sunderland. Birmingham famously retired Jude's No. 22 shirt after he departed for Borussia Dortmund, while the England international returned to say "thank you" to his boyhood club after the 2022 World Cup. Bellingham also revealed Birmingham City players Seb Larsson, Craig Gardner, and Lee Bowyer were his idols when he was young after winning the Kopa Trophy.
WHAT NEXT? Bellingham misses out for Real Madrid as they take on Valencia next in La Liga. The midfielder is, however, still expected to link up with the England squad for games against Malta and North Macedonia.