Jude Bellingham stormed off the pitch after being substituted during England’s victory over Albania on Sunday. The Real Madrid attacker endured an awful night and was replaced by Morgan Rogers with six minutes remaining after picking up a yellow card moments earlier.
England struggled against Albania and were thwarted for much of the clash in Tirana as the visitors aimed to complete a perfect World Cup qualifying campaign.
Thomas Tuchel’s men fluffed a number of chances as Albania held firm for the majority of the match. And the home side even had opportunities to take the lead after carving out a number of chances at the other end.
But England’s quality eventually shone through, with Harry Kane turning the ball in from close range for the opening goal 16 minutes before the end. The Bayern Munich striker then headed home a second with eight minutes remaining after getting on the end of a Marcus Rashford cross.
Bellingham was guilty of losing possession on a number of occasions during the game and was also lacking composure in front of goal as he blazed a close-range effort high over the bar in the second period.
He was booked for a late challenge with 10 minutes remaining. And Tuchel then decided he had seen enough as the player was substituted.
Bellingham appeared to sense that he was about to be taken off and threw his arms up in the air in frustration as he looked over at the sidelines. And the 22-year-old looked far from happy as he eventually left the pitch.
The No. 10’s departure from the match came after the former Borussia Dortmund ace had broken an unwritten rule by swapping his shirt with an Albania player at half-time.
And after the contest, England boss Tuchel acknowledged Bellingham’s frustration as he explained: “Yeah, he didn’t like it. No one likes it, but that’s how it is.
“Morgan didn’t like it to be out and didn’t deserve to be out, so it was the decision. Jude was also on a yellow card and [we] made the decision before the second goal. And the decision stands.”
Meanwhile, former England striker Ian Wright offered his view on Bellingham’s night as he told ITV: “For Jude Bellingham, with a lot of attention on him at the moment, it’s a tough game.
“Albania made it quite tough, so you have to try and do things and you’re going to lose the ball. You have to play how you believe you should be playing. That’s what I like with Jude. He will continue to do that (demand the ball) and that’s what you need. You have to be brave.”
And Roy Keane also defended Bellingham as he insisted: “Quality player come the crunch. It’s about peaking at the right time and these top lads will know when to turn up. And I’d be really surprised if he’s not in that starting XI [at the World Cup] come the summer.”