Sunderland are reportedly interested in signing Birmingham City midfielder Jobe Bellingham in January, and the Black Cats will be hoping that he can emulate his older brother Jude.
What’s the word?
According to TEAMtalk, the Black Cats, Newcastle United and Middlesbrough are all set to be embroiled in a northeastern battle to sign the 17-year-old starlet, who has followed in the footsteps of his brother by establishing himself in Birmingham’s first team at a young age.
The report claims that, while he is not held in the same high regard as Jude – who looks likely to leave Borussia Dortmund in an eye-watering deal for around £130m in the near future – he is still viewed as a top prospect by the Blues.
Sunderland’s own £130m talent?
It would be unfair to expect Jobe to have the same monumental rise as his older brother, who recently starred for England at the World Cup in Qatar despite being just 19 years old, but he certainly seems to have plenty of potential.
The youngster already has 15 first-team appearances for Birmingham to his name, although the vast majority of those have come from the bench.
There could be a temptation for the Blues to play the teenager at every opportunity given the meteoric rise of Jude after he established himself as a regular at St Andrew’s, but former manager Lee Bowyer suggested that Jobe’s hard work is the main reason for his involvement as a senior player, after he made his senior debut in January.
Bowyer said: “He’s earned that, he’s been training with us for two, three, four weeks now, you can just see him growing and improving every day.”
The attacking midfielder’s contract at Birmingham is set to expire in 2024 and the Blues will surely want to ensure that they don’t lose him on a free transfer, so they could look to cash in on him in 2023.
If Sunderland could bring him in for a relatively small transfer fee, it could definitely be worth the outlay, as there is no telling just how greatly Bellingham would develop if he gets regular football at the Stadium of Light.
There will be a lot of pressure on his young shoulders but the potential reward for Sunderland could be huge, especially if he becomes even half the player that his brother (who came second in the Kopa Trophy rankings last year) already is at just 19, so the Black Cats should definitely try and sign the 17-year-old talent.
