The reason that England international and Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham rejected the chance to sign for Manchester United has reportedly been revealed by ex-player Rio Ferdinand.
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Since joining Los Blancos in a deal worth €103 million (R2 billion) earlier this year, no player in Spain has scored more goals than the 20-year-old midfielder.
Today, the England international is considered among the most promising players in the world, particularly after he won the Kopa Trophy at the Ballon d'Or ceremony on Monday, but his foundations were very much laid at Birmingham City.
Between 2019 and 2020, Bellingham, still then a teenager, became a regular for the Blues and earned attention from top clubs around the world, and in England, before ultimately choosing to join Borussia Dortmund in 2020.
It is well-known that the talented player toured United's Carrington training ground complex and even spoke to Sir Alex Ferguson before choosing to sign for the German side, something that still frustrates Red Devil supporters to this day.
Ferdinand, recently talking about Bellingham's meteoric rise, says he has it on good authority that the 20-time English champions could not guarantee the player regular first-team football.
"Do you know what I heard it was, he wanted some assurances about being a first-team player," Ferdinand said on his Vibe with Five YouTube show.
"And United weren't willing to give him those assurances, that's what I heard from a very good source.
"He wasn't given assurances of being around the first team and he's said, 'Do you know what? I know my worth, I know my value and if you don't value me the way I see myself, I'm going to have to jog on and go to another club.'"
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Bellingham was also linked with Liverpool and Manchester City in the past, but is delighted to now be playing for Los Blancos in LALIGA.
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