Dan Neil says Jude Bellingham has raised expectations of midfield players

Sunderland star drawing inspiration from Jude Bellingham as he attempts to find new level.

Dan Neil says England star Jude Bellingham has become his role model on the ‘kind’ of midfield player he wants to become.

Neil has been a mainstay of the Sunderland team so far this season, although he has appeared to struggle for identity at times.

During his breakthrough in League One, Neil was very much a creative player, although he has been trying to add more defensive strength to his game in the Championship, perhaps due to the greater calibre of opposition.

Tony Mowbray recently said the 21-year-old needs more ‘aggression’ in his game to advance to the next level, and Neil himself believes Jude Bellingham is raising the bar for what is expected from modern midfielders.

Asked if he saw himself as primarily a defensive player or an attacking one, Neil said: “I’d like to say I’m a little bit of both. I’m a box-to-box midfielder really, a number eight.

“That’s how I see myself, and in my game, I need to be doing both things – I need to be winning the ball back, but then I also need to be contributing higher up the field."

“I need to be progressing the ball forward and creating chances. I’ve still got a lot to work on in both sides of the game, but this experience I’m getting in the Championship is invaluable. I can only keep improving and learning from it.”

“If you look at the way central midfielders play now, I think it’s changing a bit. I think you maybe had your defensive midfielders and attacking midfielders in the past, but I think now there’s more of a move towards players who can do both."

“I think Jude Bellingham is probably the best example of that – he’s somebody that goes onto the pitch and does a little bit of everything, and does it at a very high level as well. I think I see myself as that type of player.

“Growing up through the academy system, I’ve been tossing and turning all the time with questions about what position I am – whether I’m a holding midfielder or more advanced or bang in the middle.

“Personally, I think I need to be all three and just get that balance between being the artist and the soldier that the manager talks about. I think I can do a bit of everything.”

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