Anthony Joshua has told England international and Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham to ignore the criticism leveled at him. The former world heavyweight champion urged the 22-year-old to focus on his football after coming under fire during his international break.
Bellingham is hogging the headlines as debate rages over whether he should be included in England’s squad for next summer’s World Cup. The midfielder was criticized for reacting poorly to his substitution during the 2-0 win against Albania. Bellingham is said to have not taken well to manager Thomas Tuchel’s decision to replace Morgan Rodgers in the closing stages, but he was also left out of the starting line-up against Serbia, which qualified for the World Cup.
Joshua was in Miami to preview his return to boxing when he faces YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on December 15th. Joshua, 36, will take on the polarizing American after suffering the fourth defeat of his career, losing to Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium last September.
The former heavyweight was asked his thoughts on the current criticism of football players. He wasn’t brought up because he didn’t know the details of the situation, but he did offer some advice to the 22-year-old. Joshua said: “Tell me…what happened to Jude? Why (shouldn’t he be included in the England squad)?”
“But why? I don’t know exactly what’s going on in the situation, but everyone is different. If he doesn’t want to talk, that’s fine. If he wants to talk, if he doesn’t want to talk, then I don’t understand exactly what’s going on. I don’t follow football, I follow fighting games.”
“What do you think? Negative? The main thing he has to focus on is to get on the pitch and do a good job representing his country. No matter what you say, that’s what we have to focus on. Maybe he’s just tunnel vision and most people don’t understand what it takes to be in Jude Bellingham’s position.”
“Jude Bellingham is under immense pressure every day of his life. It may be one of those days, one of those years, but we want him to do what he needs to do on the field. That’s what we need to focus on.”
Former England international and Arsenal striker Ian Wright also joined the debate, enthusiastically defending Bellingham. The footballer-turned-pundit took aim at recent criticism of the former Birmingham City academy star, claiming England were “not ready for a black superstar”.
“I had to do something in GQ a while ago, and I said, as a British person, I’m British, I can’t hide that. When I was younger, everyone said, ‘You’re not really British,’ but yeah, I’m British. -I don’t think he’s ready to be a superstar. Who else can move like Jude (Bellingham)? They can’t touch him. He goes out there and performs and does what he does.” Then he said, “Who else?” I’m so grateful for these people.
“I’ll say it in football terms. Everybody loves N’Golo Kante. He’s a humble black guy who’s positive about what he’s doing. I’m not saying he’s Uncle Tom or anything, but that’s just his personality. But (Paul) Pog When you get a Ba or a Bellingham and you get that kind of energy, it doesn’t sit well with people. So for some reason, a guy like Jude scares these people with his abilities and the inspiration he can give.
“When you go out as a black man, you’re taught to do the best you can, keep your head down, and be, for lack of a better word, a humble fucking slave.
“This is pulling from that kind of energy, because if you’re outspoken and black and play at that level and don’t have compassion, that scares certain people. That’s what’s going on with Jude. This guy is self-obsessed. He’s detached from that kind of energy. He’s not going to see a black person look at what Jude is doing and think it’s not well-intentioned. He’s not a good guy. I do.” That’s what it comes down to. ”
