Jude Bellingham tipped to become one of the greatest ever by Roy Keane

Jude Bellingham

Roy Keane

England’s historic demolition of Croatia in Rijeka was dominated by a masterclass from Jude Bellingham, prompting a massive prediction from Roy Keane.

Thomas Tuchel’s side ran riot in a 7-0 Nations League victory, inflicting the heaviest defeat in Croatia’s history.

Bellingham was at the heart of everything, scoring once and providing three assists to dismantle Slaven Bilic’s side.

Keane’s ultimate praise

Speaking on ITV, former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane was left awestruck by the 23-year-old’s performance.

Keane believes the Real Madrid star is destined for the very top of the game, provided he can avoid physical setbacks.

Speaking on ITV, Keane said:

“Outstanding in every aspect, I think Bellingham can go on to be one of the greatest players of all time.”

The pundit highlighted that the midfielder’s influence extends far beyond his technical brilliance on the ball, lifting the entire squad with his work rate.

Speaking on ITV, Keane added:

“Again his attitude with England recently, I’ve been praising him a lot for being fantastic in possession, but what he’s doing out of possession, that lifts all these other players.”

Re-writing history in Rijeka

England’s ruthless display broke multiple long-standing records on a historic night in Croatia.

They became the first senior men’s international team to score five or more goals in an away fixture against the Chequered Ones.

The seven-goal margin also represented England’s largest-ever victory against a nation ranked in the top 50 since records began in 1992.

This surpassed their previous best of 5-0 against Serbia in 2025 and an identical scoreline against the Czech Republic in 2019.

It also evoked memories of other famous results, including the 5-1 thrashing of Germany in 2001 and another 5-1 win over Croatia in 2009.

A strange atmosphere in Croatia

The match was played behind closed doors, with only 100 England supporters permitted inside the stadium.

While a ticket ban was in place, a crowd of local schoolchildren was allowed in, but they witnessed a complete mismatch.

First-half goals from Harry Kane, Bellingham, Anthony Gordon, and Bukayo Saka set the tone before the break.

Kane and Saka both completed their braces in the second half, while Morgan Rogers also found the net to round off the scoring.

Matching a legend’s milestone

Bellingham’s four goal involvements saw him match a feat not achieved by an England midfielder for over three decades.

He is the first player in his position to achieve this since David Platt’s four-goal display against San Marino in 1993.

Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka was quick to laud his international teammate, labelling his display special.

Speaking to ITV after the match, Saka said:

“He was special. Happy to play with him and happy to have him in the England team.”

What lies ahead for Tuchel

The statistics backed up England’s complete dominance, with Tuchel’s side registering an astonishing 6.14 Expected Goals.

They controlled 64% of possession and won 63% of their duels against a disjointed Croatia side.

Thomas Tuchel guided England to a historic and record-breaking victory in Rijeka.

England host the Czech Republic on 6 October, aiming to cement their commanding position at the top of their Nations League group.