Harry Kane sends Jobe Bellingham message amid new club woes and dad's confrontation
Bayern Munich and England star Harry Kane has spoken about the difficulties of Jobe Bellingham following his move to Borussia Dortmund and the Bundesliga from Sunderland
Harry Kane leapt to the defence of Jobe Bellingham following his error as Bayern Munich defeated Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga. The former Sunderland player, younger brother of England star Jude, failed to clear a ball which allowed Michael Olise to score in Bayern's 2-1 win.
Kane opened the scoring in Der Klassiker to continue his phenomenal start to the season; the Three Lions captain has bagged 12 goals and three assists in seven appearances. Bellingham, meanwhile, has found it difficult to break into Dortmund's plans following his £31million move from Sunderland.
The 20-year-old has been utilised as a rotation option and came off the bench once again at the weekend. Entering the field as a 73rd-minute sub, Bellingham intercepted a cross but could not deal with it properly before Olise secured the home side's victory.
And Kane, despite his jubilation at the final whistle, found some time to offer some kind words for his countryman. The veteran forward admitted it was a difficult time for Bellingham, however.
"It was a tough situation for him. He tries to control the first ball, but Michael Olise reacts well and slides into the ball," he said.
READ MORE: Liverpool hit by travel chaos as aircraft issue delays Eintracht Frankfurt tripREAD MORE: Cristiano Ronaldo's son earns first Portugal U16 call-up to follow in dad's footsteps"Unfortunate, but he just has to keep going and work hard. He's a good player with a lot of potential.
"I'm sure he wants to play more right now, but that's part of learning at this level. He has a great future ahead of him, he just needs to keep working."
Dortmund boss Niko Kovac has no harsh words for his young charge, however. Instead, he was impressed with the initial play.
"I can’t find any fault with Jobe. He was standing where he needed to be," said the head coach. "The ball was played in so sharply. It was an artistic feat in its own right that he didn’t score an own-goal.
"When a ball is played in so sharply, his first task is to hold his centre of gravity. He had his head down and Olise took advantage of this split second and slid in. That’s not a simple [situation]. There’s no fault. I think that everything is fine with that situation."
Bellingham's start at Dortmund came under a cloud as his dad, Mark, confronted members of the club hierarchy. On the opening day, Kovac subbed off the summer signing at half-time.
That appeared to infuriate Mark, who reportedly got into a heated altercation with Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl. As a result, he was banned from locker room areas as the club looked to ensure club staff were the only ones permitted.
England legend Sir Geoff Hurst has labelled Mark Bellingham's behaviour an 'absolute disgrace' "A thing that has irritated me is a picture in one of the papers about the most powerful man in English football - and it's Jude Bellingham's father," Hurst said.
"He was complaining when his son was taken off in a game - and that is an absolute joke. If you don't eradicate that kind of thing, that is an absolute disgrace."
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