Jude Bellingham is a player that could go on to make significant strides in the right direction in world football, with the midfielder now playing his football for German giants Borussia Dortmund. 

The youngster burst onto the scene with a number of impressive performances for Birmingham City last season, as they finished 20th in the Championship table.

Those strong showings saw Dortmund land his signature, for a fee believed to be in the region of £25million.

Bellingham has since gone on to be called up for the England senior side, for their upcoming international fixtures, after previously being involved in their Under-21s team.

Speaking in a recent interview with Sky Sports (quotes sourced from the Daily Mail), former Arsenal defender Tony Adams has claimed that Arsenal were interested in a deal to sign Bellingham before he moved to Dortmund.

"I think it got lost, this one, in the transition of the chief scout at Arsenal going out.

"He was spotted very early on, not by me, by the Arsenal recruitment office. The chief scout was absolutely bowled over by him and the great prospect that he is."

Adams went on to admit that the deal got 'lost in translation', with Arsenal's Sporting Director Edu not knowing about Bellingham.

"He had the deal kind of done but at that moment the new sporting director Edu came in from Brazil and had no European experience and no UK experience.

"I think it got lost in the transition, Edu didn't know nothing about this player."

Arsenal are set to return to action after the international break, when they take on Leeds United, in what is certain to be a tricky test for the Gunners at Elland Road.

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The Verdict: 

It's an interesting claim.

Bellingham really impressed me in his breakthrough season with Birmingham City, and I'll admit that I'm surprised to see him featuring regularly for the Borussia Dortmund first-team already, but that can only be a good thing for his development as a player.

Arsenal have shown that they're willing to give younger players a chance in their senior side this term under the management of Mikel Arteta, and Bellingham could have been the next player to feature if he had signed.

But they can't afford to dwell on that for long, as they need to focus on turning their recent slump in form round at the earliest of opportunities.