Jude Bellingham’s stunning fifth-minute header on Sunday evening saved England’s chances at the European Championships, drawing Slovakia 1-1 and sending it into extra time. Harry Kane scored a 2-1 win to send England into the quarterfinals with Switzerland. After the match, Bellingham, who just turned 21, released an excerpt of a speech by former US president Theodore Roosevelt as a possible response to criticism England will face at Euro 2024.
After celebrating his goal that pushed the match into extra time, the Real Madrid midfielder looked aside and said, “Who else?” Harry Kane, the captain of England, then scored the game’s winning goal to a 2-1 victory and secured a spot in the quarterfinals against Switzerland.
Bellingham was under pressure to live up to his reputation as one of the game’s top emerging stars in Gareth Southgate’s squad following a run of subpar performances in Germany.
WATCH: https://x.com/EURO2024/status/1807495831731294289
Bellingham shared part of Roosevelt’s influential speech, “The Man in the Arena”, on his Instagram. The speech begins with the words “It is not the critic who decides” and continues with the words “The credit goes to the man who is really in the arena. “This was probably in response to harsh criticism from the team.
England has drawn the ire of fans for their poor performance at Euro 2024. Fans have praised the team and faced harsh remarks, including former national team captain and current BBC presenter Gary—Lineker, who used the word to criticize the team’s display in his podcast.
Bellingham’s social media posts showed his pride and determination. “We are so proud of the boys tonight that we live to fight another day,” he wrote. Its use in Roosevelt’s speech seems to emphasize his resilience and commitment despite the pressure and criticism of representing England on such a big stage.
