England midfielder Jude Bellingham surpasses Cristiano Ronaldo and Michael Owen in Sunday’s 1-0 win over Serbia at Euro 2024.
England midfielder Jude Bellingham eclipsed Cristiano Ronaldo and Michael Owen in Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Serbia at Euro 2024.
Bellingham entered the tournament off the back of a memorable first season with Real Madrid which saw him win La Liga, the Champions League and the Spanish Super Cup.
The 20-year-old was rested for England’s warm-up games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iceland, before being named in Gareth Southgate‘s lineup for the tournament opener against Serbia.
Bellingham played a decisive role in his first appearance since the Champions League final, meeting Bukayo Saka‘s deflected cross to steer his header beyond Predrag Rajkovic.
The Three Lions ultimately saw out the remainder of the contest to keep a clean sheet and put three points on the board in Group C.
© Reuters
Bellingham beats Ronaldo, Owen record
Not only did he score the winning goal, but Bellingham put his name in the record books with his appearance at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen.
At the age of 20 years and 353 days, Bellingham became the youngest player to play at three major international tournaments, surpassing the previous record held by former England striker Owen (22 years and 170 days old).
The England star also surpassed Portugal forward Ronaldo, who achieved the same feat at 23 years and 123 days old.
Bellingham made his first three major tournament appearances at Euro 2020, featuring as a substitute in three matches as England made their way to the final.
The former Borussia Dortmund midfielder was then a regular fixture at the 2022 World Cup, starting all five of England’s matches before they suffered quarter-final elimination at the hands of France.
© Reuters
Bellingham creates more history
After scoring against Iran at the 2022 World Cup, Bellingham’s header against Serbia means he is now the first player to score for the Three Lions at both major tournaments while playing his club football outside of England.
The Real Madrid man has also followed in the footsteps of Bobby Charlton, Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker and Bryan Robson, becoming the fifth player to score England’s opening goal in two different major competitions.
After scoring his first European Championship goal, Bellingham has now scored four goals in 30 appearances for his country.
Bellingham should get the chance to add to that tally when England take on Denmark in their second group game on Thursday.
No Data Analysis info