It’s difficult to imagine two footballing environments as contrasting as Sunderland and Real Madrid, but the Bellingham brothers are thriving in both. While Jude continues to shine for the Spanish and European champions, younger sibling Jobe is making his own way at the Stadium of Light. The future is bright for him too.
Like Jude, Jobe Bellingham broke through at Birmingham City, but stayed in the Championship by joining Sunderland last year. Since then, the teenager has developed at a dramatic rate. Indeed, he is now the driving force of a team currently sitting top of the English second tier and targeting promotion to the Premier League.
Chris Rigg is another prodigious youngster currently pushing The Black Cats towards the Championship title. At just 17, he is even younger than Bellingham and like his midfield partner chose Sunderland as the place place to grow after being scouted by some of the biggest clubs in Europe.
This says something about Sunderland’s new focus on youth. Of the 11 players to have played the most league minutes for The Black Cats this season, only Patrick Roberts (27) and Luke O’Nien (29) is anywhere near the age of 30. Regis Le Bris’ team is one of the youngest in the Championship.
Left back Dennis Cirkin is a first team figure at 22 with Trai Hume on the other side of the defence the same age. Then there’s Dan Neil – also 22 – at the base of the midfield and 17-year-old Romaine Mundle on the left side of the front three. 19-year-old Eliezer Mayenda has also made an impact in the centre forward position.
It’s Bellingham and Rigg, however, who have made the greatest impression so far this season. As part of Sunderland’s midfield three in a 4-3-3 formation, the pair are proving themselves to be the dynamic, technical and adaptable operators required at the top of the modern game. They’re improving all the time.
Rigg, who is reportedly being monitored by Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, is more rounded in his game than possibly any other midfielder his age. The 17-year-old is comfortable with the ball at his feet. He can pass. He can dribble. He has an eye for goal, as demonstrated by his three league strikes this season. He’s become undroppable.
According to Tony Mowbray, Rigg also possesses a “Roy Keane-esque type of nastiness” that makes him extremely effective out of possession. Rigg’s positional awareness is another quality that makes him stand out. He has become a symbol of Sunderland’s aggressive and innovative style of play.
Many have drawn comparisons between Rigg and Jordan Henderson. Like the former Liverpool captain, Rigg has natural leadership qualities which belie his age. This gives him an authority on the pitch that is difficult to teach. “Rigg is a good symbol of what we want to create and what we want to build as a team, as a club,” said Le Bris.
Like his older brother, Bellingham is most comfortable when positioned high up the pitch, but Le Bris has deployed the 19-year-old in a slightly deeper role this season. Bellingham still has the freedom to get forward and pose a goal threat, but he is being asked to contribute more as a midfield rhythm builder. This has aided his development.
“He’s still a young player with the ability to play in many different roles,” explain Le Bris when recently asked about Bellingham’s role for Sunderland. “But I like him as a number eight because I think he’s an offensive midfielder. He can express his power, his ability to run and his ability to press – to link defence and attack.”
On their current upward trajectory, Sunderland will lose Bellingham and Rigg at some point in the future. That’s just how modern football works. The Black Cats were able to resist overtures for Bellingham from Brentford, Crystal Palace, and Tottenham Hotspur in the summer, but the young midfielder will one day need to leave the North East to achieve his career ambitions.
Bellingham has been clear about one of his ambitions – to play alongside his brother for England. “Because we’re of a similar age and we’ve played together for so long – in the street and on tufts of grass – to play with my brother for England, that would be the biggest dream of my life,” said Jobe.
“That would mean more than any of the trophies, especially if we managed to do it on a consistent basis and play at a major tournament together, win things together. Honestly, nothing would even get close to that. Nothing.”
Should Jobe get as far as the England team, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that Rigg could be another familiar face alongside him. Sunderland has become the Championship’s most productive talent incubator and in Bellingham and Rigg they have two players destined for the top.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
You can follow every Leverkusen game on FotMob – with in-depth stat coverage including xG, shot maps, and player ratings. Download the free app here.