Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho has revealed that he was interested in making a move for Jude Bellingham when he was still with Birmingham City.

Bellingham was one of the most sought-after young talents in European football last summer, with there having been reports that Manchester United were keen to sign him. They even gave him a tour of their training facilities as they attempted to convince him to make the switch.

However, in the end, Bellingham made the decision to sign for Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth around £30 million.

It is a move that has so far worked out really well for the midfielder and he has made the England squad for the Euros after scoring four goals in all competitions for the German side last term in an impressive campaign.

In his latest column for The Sun, Mourinho, now in charge of AS Roma after leaving Tottenham part-way through last season, admitted that he had been keen on securing Bellingham’s signature when he was in charge at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

He wrote: “He defends well as a midfield player but then he has the potential to be offensive. I like him very much. He is a box-to-box player, that old-school profile.

“I love everything about Bellingham. I can’t believe his age, only 17. The way he plays, the way he brings himself into the game, shows so much maturity.

“We were aware of him when he was at Birmingham and Borussia Dortmund did a phenomenal job to sign him — as with Jadon Sancho.”

The Verdict

This is a very interesting admission from Mourinho and it shows just how highly thought of Bellingham was during his time at St Andrews. The midfielder’s performance in that 2019/20 season had caught the attention of Tottenham it seems alongside the likes of Manchester United and Dortmund and you can see why with the talent that he possesses.

Maybe if Spurs would have been able to bring in someone like Bellingham then they might have enjoyed a little more success under Mourinho than they were able to in the end. The 17-year-old is very much already well in that mould of player that the Portuguese manager loves to work with, as he has both style and quality in possession but also that real work ethic out of possession.

Given both Dortmund and Manchester United’s interest, it was always going to be difficult for Mourinho to bring him to Spurs and so it proved to be. However, it should be a huge compliment to both the midfielder and the Blues that one of the games best managers was keen to bring him in from Birmingham last summer.