Manchester United have been left stunned by Jude Bellingham's decision to snub them for a move to Borussia Dortmund.
The Bundesliga giants are on the brink of confirming a £20million deal for the Birmingham teenager, despite strong interest from United, as well as Manchester City and Bayern Munich.
The 17-year-old is expected to put pen to paper on a five-year deal at Dortmund, and is said to have been convinced by the project at the club, as well as the chance of regular first-team opportunities.
United had gone to great lengths to tempt the midfielder, even showing him round their Carrington training HQ with the help of Sir Alex Ferguson.
And according to The Athletic, United were initially surprised when news emerged in Germany that Dortmund had won the race to land the England youngster.
A club source told the publication: “I can’t see why he is making the decision so soon.
"Imagine if United win the Europa League and FA Cup, qualify for the Champions League — is that not a more attractive option than Borussia Dortmund?"
Indeed, it has also been claimed that United were confident that Bellingham had a great chance of immediately breaking into the first-team despite the player's own concerns.
The report cites the emergence of Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood this season, while Cristiano Ronaldo made a memorable impact after arriving as a fresh-faced teenager.
Bellingham turned 17 earlier this month, meaning he is now eligible to sign a professional contract.
Bellingham is enthused by the career trajectories of the likes of Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland since joining BVB, and is now hopeful of making similar progress himself.
Dortmund are understood to have agreed wages of around £2.7 million, more than United were prepared to pay initially.
The youngster was reportedly sent shirts and invited on a tour of the club's Signal Iduna Park and the training ground before the winter break.
Dortmund also created a a video for Bellingham which depicted the sensation of playing in front of the Yellow Wall, Europe’s biggest standing terrace; and also detailed the successful transition of Sancho.
It is claimed that by February, the Germans were confident that they had indeed won the race.
That belief was strengthened in May when, as claimed by The Athletic, Bellingham watched Dortmund's 4-0 win over the Schalke which was the first game of the Bundesliga's restart.
The youngster donned a Dortmund shirt for the encounter, which he watched on TV at home in the Midlands, and sent the club proof following the game.
