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What these two pictures tell us about Jude Bellingham's attitude to football
It was impossible to know what Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham said when he approached Harry Kane as the Bayern Munich striker prepared to take a penalty in Tuesday evening’s Champions League semi-final first leg.
Whatever the precise words, it was very unlikely that Bellingham was wishing his international team-mate the best of luck, and referee Clement Turpin had to intervene to tell the midfielder to get out of the way.
Not that Kane was unduly concerned. In his initial post-match interview with TNT Sport, the game’s UK broadcaster, the England captain said he hadn’t heard what Bellingham said. It wasn’t until after the final whistle that Bellingham revealed all.
“I spoke to him after and he said: ‘I know you’re going to go left of the keeper’,” said Kane. “But it was nice for me because I saw the keeper go a little bit early and I put it away.”
Nothing was going to distract Harry Kane from getting his goal 😤 pic.twitter.com/mR05vjxCPH
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 30, 2024
It was hardly incendiary stuff, and there is unlikely to be any lasting rancour between two players who had greeted each other warmly before kick-off. Yet the contrast between the image of Bellingham whispering in Kane’s ear in an effort to gain an advantage for his club and the picture of him putting his arm around the same player moments after he had missed a crucial late penalty against France in England’s 2022 World Cup quarter-finals defeat could not have been greater.
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They also speak to two sides of Bellingham’s personality, both of which have been evident in what is his debut season in Spain. There have never been any doubts regarding strength of character – his penchant for late goals, including in both La Liga Clasicos against Barcelona, is testament to that.
While clearly enjoying the attention coming his way from his new club’s fans, Bellingham has also been praised for sharing the limelight: take, for example, his instruction for fans to applaud Fede Valverde for setting him up to score against Osasuna in October.
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He also provided a very unselfish assist for striker Joselu the following month, subsequently explaining that he wanted to help out a team-mate who had been going through a rough spell in front of goal.
This looked like exceptional emotional intelligence and personal maturity, and helped make Bellingham phenomenally popular with Madrid players and supporters alike.
His gesture to Kane following that World Cup quarter-final penalty was significant, too. Bellingham – then aged just 19 – was the only member of the England side to console their captain after he failed to equalise in the 84th minute of what ended as a 2-1 loss, and it spoke to a maturity beyond his years.
Jude Bellingham consoles Harry Kane (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
The flipside to all this, however, is that Bellingham can also come close to the line – or even cross it – when things are not going so well either for him personally or for his team.
That was already signalled during his time at previous club Borussia Dortmund, when Bellingham was known to feel that some team-mates did not reach his own high standards — especially when they threw away a great chance to win the German title in May last year.
Bellingham’s patience with Spanish referees also wore thin quite quickly. He felt he was not receiving enough protection as defenders used any methods they could to limit his influence on games.
He picked up four yellow cards in six games through January and February, mostly for either dissent or ‘revenge’ fouls, serving a punishment for accumulation of bookings. Then came his most high-profile run-in with officialdom, when he was red-carded for furious protests after referee Jesus Gil Manzano whistled for full time just as he thought he had scored another late winner in a La Liga game against Valencia in early March.
Bellingham was still raging as he left the pitch that night, quickly reposting an Instagram message which said: “The referee literally waited for Brahim Diaz to cross the ball! THIS IS A SCANDAL.” He quickly removed that message from his account, but he was still banned for three matches.
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There was also the incident when Madrid played neighbours Getafe in early February, and Bellingham clashed with fellow Englishman Mason Greenwood, during a bad-tempered game against a physical team.
Getafe claimed that Bellingham had made an “offensive remark” to Greenwood, who joined the La Liga club on a season-long loan from Manchester United at the end of last summer’s transfer window. Greenwood had seen charges of attempted rape, assault, and coercive control dropped by the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in February 2023. He denied all the alleged offences.
After a lip reader was consulted, the Spanish FA (RFEF) said no credible evidence of what Bellingham allegedly said to Greenwood had been found, and the case was dismissed.
Bellingham received total backing from Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti and the club hierarchy after both the Greenwood and Mestalla incidents, and everyone at the Bernabeu has been keen to look after their latest emerging superstar.
Fans of the club will also not be worried about any signs of being a bad loser, or even his taste for gamesmanship. Both fit perfectly with Madrid’s self-image as a place where winning is the most important thing (even as it goes against the ‘gentlemanly’ values that they also boast of).
Jude Bellingham does not lack confidence (Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
Bellingham’s career has been on warp speed so far – from becoming Birmingham City’s youngest first-team player just past his 16th birthday, to moving to Germany as the most expensive 17-year-old in history, playing for England at two international tournaments while still a teenager, and now making such a sensational start with Madrid.
All this brings attention and pressure. Bellingham has mostly shown he can handle it, and channel whatever he is feeling into spectacular performances and moments for his team. Still, for all his many talents, he is not Superman, and there have been signs lately that he is feeling the strains of his incredible first season in Spain.
He struggled to make an impact during the two Champions League quarter-final legs recently against Manchester City. And while he followed that with the last-gasp El Clasico winner 10 days ago, he was quiet again last night in his first game in Germany since leaving Dortmund.
“Jude didn’t play at his best today, but he will be back very soon,” said Ancelotti, who also revealed Bellingham had been withdrawn because he was suffering from cramp. “He will be 100 per cent by Wednesday (the second leg at the Bernabeu next week).”
Could Bellingham’s character lead to behaviour that might be better controlled? Maybe. And s***housing your national captain in a Champions League semi-final is probably not the wisest idea.
But if Bellingham’s career has taught us anything, it is that he will do things his way.
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(Top photos: TNT Sports and Getty Images)
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Croatia thought their FIFA World Cup hopes were still alive when they scored the game-tying goal just before the end of stoppage time in the second half.
But a VAR review said Mario Pasalic was offside, and it was Portugal moving on instead.
Gonçalo Ramos’ goal just minutes earlier — a beautiful header into the back of the net in the 94th minute — was the decider in this 2-1 victory for Portugal. And it was only the second time in Portuguese World Cup history the nation needed to come from behind to win, underscoring its resilience on the sport’s biggest stage.
Luka Modric of Croatia and teammates react after the 1-2 loss during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 2, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario. (Patrick Smith – FIFA)
It was a controversial ending, though, and one where Croatia tried to argue the ball never hit the head of Igor Matanovic, which made Pasalic offside during VAR review.
It’s also worth noting that a new chip within the ball shows when it is touched, giving more concrete evidence to the referee’s final decision in such a crucial time of the match. This was the 10th goal overruled by VAR thus far in the World Cup.
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So, with the goal annulled, Croatia’s time at the tournament has ended. As a result, Croatian legend Luka Modrić is finishing his fifth World Cup, which will likely be the 40-year-old midfielder’s final one.
But another older legend on the pitch will move on, as Cristiano Ronaldo made some World Cup history during this match.
When No. 7 stepped foot on the pitch and the ball was kicked, he became the oldest player to participate in a knockout stage match at the World Cup at 41 years and 147 days old. He also became the oldest player to score in a knockout stage match when he saw a penalty situation while Portugal was down 1-0 in the match.
Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 2, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario. (Patrick Smith – FIFA)
Ivan Perisic got the first goal of this game and put Portugal’s back against the wall. But after a foul was committed inside Croatia’s box in the 67th minute, it was time for Ronaldo to get his first career knockout goal, and he didn’t disappoint.
Ronaldo was ecstatic, sprinting toward the corner flag and performing his signature “SIU!” celebration, which the crowd bellowed with the score at 1-1. Ronaldo had also seemed to get that first knockout goal just minutes earlier but he was called offside.
Modrić and Ronaldo, two former teammates on Real Madrid, also made history together, as they were the first two players 40 years or older to play in the same match together.
Luka Modric of Croatia congratulates Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 2, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
It was also an emotional moment after the match, as Ronaldo wore the jersey of late Portugal teammate Diogo Jota, who died in a car accident a year ago. A team photo was taken on the pitch, with Ronaldo holding up Jota’s jersey alongside his squad.
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Now that the job is done in the Round of 32 for Portugal, they face a big challenge against a key rival in the Round of 16.
Spain, who dominated Austria with a 3-0 finish earlier on Thursday, awaits Portugal at Dallas Stadium on July 6 at 3 p.m. ET.
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Roki Sasaki’s abysmal appearance faded away in the Dodgers’ 12-7 win over the San Diego Padres on Thursday night, but only after the National League West leaders rose from a catatonic first inning.
The Dodgers roared back from a 6-0 deficit as Andy Pages skirted a tying double down the left-field line, and Mookie Betts and Max Muncy each drove in runs to give them the lead for good in a four-run fourth inning. All of which sent the sold-out Dodger Stadium crowd into jubilant celebrations, some jumping, others breaking out World Cup chants.
“Thankfully, it played out the way I didn’t expect,” manager Dave Roberts said of the team’s ability to turn the game around, “or the way it started.”
By the time the game ended, Sasaki’s three-inning start seemed like a murky nightmare the Dodgers awoke from in a sweat. Except the Dodgers weren’t dreaming, and the team hadn’t done much to assuage the concerns with Sasaki.
The problem with Sasaki isn’t his stuff. On his best nights, when the velocity and command combine, Sasaki blows past batters with a triple-digit fastball and cutting off-speed pitches. The problem has been how to tick the radar without making the strike zone look like a Jackson Pollock painting — and recently, it has.
Sasaki’s June swoon, impervious to the calendar change, continued into Thursday’s series opener against the Padres, in which the right-hander gave up three home runs among seven hits before Roberts called it quits going into the fourth inning.
“They were on everything,” Roberts said. “You could see it.”
One possible concern? Tipping pitches. While Roberts and catcher Dalton Rushing said the team would need to do more research into Sasaki’s start, both left the door open to this answer.
“That would be a big explanation as to how they felt like they were on every pitch,” Rushing said.
As San Diego chugged through its lineup, Sasaki struggled to keep up. With his first pitch, he gave up a double to Fernando Tatis Jr., who scored on Manny Machado’s home run that left center fielder Pages staring at the ball’s path as it plopped down on the other side of the blue outfield fence.
The inning was only a preview of the Padres’ power. Each of the nine San Diego batters got his chance against Sasaki in the second, and the team quickly dug the Dodgers into a six-run hole. He surrendered two home runs in the second inning. Jackson Merrill blasted a ball to left-center field leading off, and, two outs later, Jake Cronenworth drove in two runs with a shot to right-center.
Sasaki said through interpreter Kensuke Okubo that he needed to work on his command, but he felt like his fastball was good.
Roki Sasaki has his head down after giving up a solo homer to Jackson Merrill in the second inning.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
“I don’t think my stuff was bad today,” Sasaki said. “Overall, it wasn’t great but a lot of things evolved.”
Part of Sasaki’s issue lies with his approach. Roberts said he wants the second-year pitcher to be aggressive, to play the cat-and-mouse game required to beat batters in the box. But when given the opportunity, Sasaki has shrunken in recent outings, struggling with his command and his ability to pitch deep into games.
“We had a great May, so let’s just get back to competing and making pitches,” Roberts said.
When reliever Will Klein walked out to the mound in the fourth to the aggressive, rambunctious clamor of the Dropkick Murphys’ “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” and collected two scoreless, one-hit innings, the relief was immediate: The Dodgers took the lead.
The lineup already was revving, as Rushing homered in the second inning while Sasaki was still in the game, and both Kyle Tucker and Muncy drove in runs off starter Randy Vasquez in the third, cutting the deficit to two. The Dodgers broke through against the Padres’ bullpen to score six runs in the fourth and fifth innings.
“The bullpen was fantastic tonight, and then the offense came up big,” Roberts said.
A late catch by Pages helped close out the game after he gloved a ball despite ramming into the padding of the center field wall. A combined effort by Paul Gervase and Tanner Scott shut down San Diego’s ninth-inning momentum after it pushed across a run.
“Turned back around, was able to find the ball and make a really good catch right there,” Tucker said of Pages. “That was a huge out.”
The Dodgers (57-31) beat their division rivals for the fifth time in seven games to open a 13-game lead over both San Diego and Arizona. The Padres, meanwhile, have lost six straight and given up 66 runs over the last six days, the most in such a span in franchise history.
But San Diego’s flaws don’t negate the Dodgers’ as they burned through six relievers in their win. So, while the Dodgers crawled out of the hole with a season-high 17 hits, the steep cost heightens the pressure on the rest of the rotation the rest of the series.
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In previous years, the Round of 16 was the first knockout stage match, but with an expanded field of 48 teams— it is now the second.
Let’s check out the odds at FanDuel Sportsbook as of July 2 for which countries are favored to make the Round of 16 and emerge from it.
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.
To Reach Round of 16
Argentina: -2000 (bet $10 to win $10.50 total)
Colombia: -550 (bet $10 to win $11.82 total)
Portugal: -340 (bet $10 to win $12.94 total)
Switzerland: -235 (bet $10 to win $14.26 total)
Egypt: -148 (bet $10 to win $16.76 total)
Australia: +122 (bet $10 to win $22.20 total)
Algeria: +186 (bet $10 to win $28.60 total)
Croatia: +260 (bet $10 to win $36 total)
Ghana: +380 (bet $10 to win $48 total)
Cape Verde: +1160 (bet $10 to win $126 total)
Now let’s check out the odds at FanDuel Sportsbook as of July 2 for the matchups already in place.
SATURDAY, JULY 4
Canada vs. Morocco
To Advance: MAR -300, CAN +225
Moneyline: MAR -130, Draw +240, CAN +420
Paraguay vs. France
To Advance: FRA -1800, PRY +1140
Moneyline: FRA -600, Draw +600, PRY +1800
SUNDAY, JULY 5
Brazil vs. Norway
To Advance: BRA -245, NOR +196
Moneyline: BRA -120, Draw +260, NOR +340
Mexico vs. England
To Advance: ENG -134, MEX +110
Moneyline: ENG +145, Draw +210, MEX +200
MONDAY, JULY 6
USA vs. Belgium
To Advance: USA -110, BEL -110
Moneyline: USA +165, Draw +230, BEL +170
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