John Barnes believes the comparisons between Jude Bellingham and Steven Gerrard are 'stupid' and that English media over-hype young talents who have 'done nothing'.
Bellingham has earned high praise throughout the week after his deft header opened the scoring in England's 6-2 win against Iran on Monday. The 19-year-old produced an all-action midfield performance at the Khalifa International Stadium, covering every blade of grass and no doubt upping his market value.
Such performances have brought with them high praise and inevitable comparisons to legends gone by, with Bellingham repeatedly likened to Steven Gerrard for his battling energy and attacking intent. But Barnes, who has dismissed the idea that World Cup form will affect Liverpool's chances of signing the teenager, has labelled such comparisons 'stupid'.
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“Liverpool aren’t signing him because of what he does at the World Cup," Barnes told BonusCodeBets. "If he has a terrible World Cup, Liverpool will still want to sign him.
"He’s not all of a sudden going to become Messi because of what he does at the World Cup. He’s not all of a sudden going to become the best player in the world.
“These stupid comparisons of him to Stevie Gerrard or Frank Lampard are ridiculous. We did the same thing with Theo Walcott. That’s why I like him being in Germany. It allows him to develop with humility. In England we overemphasise how good young players are when really they’ve done nothing.
“He’s got great potential. He’s going to be a fantastic player but if we start putting pressure on him to talk about what Steven Gerrard has done in his fifteen years to say Jude Bellingham is better? No he’s not.”
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