Midfielder was called up to the England squad but did not play a single minute
Real Madrid are reportedly unhappy with Thomas Tuchel over his handling of Jude Bellingham during the March international break.
According to reports in Spain, club officials viewed Bellingham’s call-up to the England national team as unnecessary after the midfielder remained on the bench for both friendly matches. The 22-year-old did not feature in the 1-1 draw with Uruguay or the 1-0 defeat to Japan.
Spanish outlet Marca described the international trip as “pointless”, particularly given Bellingham’s recent return from injury. He had only played a few minutes in Madrid’s derby win over Atletico Madrid prior to joining up with the England squad. The club had expected him either to receive valuable minutes to rebuild fitness or remain in Madrid to continue his recovery.
Tuchel, however, defended his decision, insisting he prioritised the player’s long-term fitness over short-term involvement in friendlies ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
“I think it’s too much of a risk,” England’s manager said. “So, the tendency is that he [Bellingham] will not play. We have all gained from him being part of it. He was excellent in training, but he was involved as a neutral player. He was involved in not the whole 100 per cent of the training.
“So, it looked very, very good but we’re still holding him back, to not take a risk. The injury is a muscle, it’s a very particular one, and we absolutely don’t want the re-injury in this moment of the season. And him as well, it was very good that he was in camp. He was excellent.”
Despite that explanation, Madrid feel the decision has done little to aid Bellingham’s readiness ahead of their Champions League quarter-final first leg against Bayern Munich. The club believe that if the midfielder was fit enough to train, he could have been given minutes to help regain match sharpness before returning for the decisive stage of the season.
