- Jude Bellingham was sent off for using foul and abusive language on Saturday
- He was accused of saying ‘f*** you’, but claims that he actually said ‘f*** off’
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Jude Bellingham might have avoided his red card on Saturday had he heeded a warning issued by Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo back in 2018.
England star Bellingham was sent off by referee Jose Luis Munuera Montero 39 minutes into Madrid 1-1 draw at Osasuna for foul and abusive language.
But Bellingham was adamant that he had not been abusive towards the referee, who accused the former Birmingham City wonderkid of telling him: ‘F*** you’.
Bellingham’s account was that he had said: ‘F*** off’, but that these words were aimed at himself in frustration, rather than at the match official.
Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti added after the match: ‘I think the referee did not understand Jude Bellingham’s English. He said “f*** off”, not “f*** you”… that’s way different.
‘I won’t talk more about the referee as I want to be on the bench next week.’
Jude Bellingham (right) was sent off while playing for Real Madrid after saying: ‘F*** off’
Bellingham was shocked at the referee’s suggestion that he had actually said: ‘F*** you’
Bellingham began his senior career in England with Birmingham City, before moving to German side Borussia Dortmund in 2020.
He left Dortmund for Madrid three years later and has since made 76 appearances for Los Blancos.
Like Bellingham, Ronaldo played in England before Spain. He scored 118 goals in 292 games for Manchester United prior to joining Madrid in 2009.
In 2018 during an interview with La Sexta, Ronaldo commented that ‘f*** off’ was a common phrase often ignored by English officials but that it would likely land players in trouble in Spain.
Ronaldo said: ‘I played in England for many years. For example, when there is a foul, the English say a lot of “f*** off” and the referees don’t say anything.
‘But if you say it here they send you out.’
Bellingham was adamant that the referee made an error in sending him off on Saturday.
In a post-game interview, the 21-year-old said: ‘I didn’t say anything bad to the referee. It’s clear that there was a communication error.
Cristiano Ronaldo pictured back in 2018 after helping Madrid win the Champions League final
Ronaldo warned seven years ago that saying ‘f*** off’ in Spain would likely result in a red card
‘It’s an expression like the Spanish one “j***r”… and the consequence is that he left us with one less player.
‘It’s not an insult, it was an expression for myself.’
Madrid were 1-0 up when Bellingham left the field. They had taken the lead through Kylian Mbappe’s 25th goal of the season.
But Osasuna hit back against Madrid’s 10 men in the second half when Ante Budimir found the net with a penalty kick awarded by Munuera Montero for a foul by Eduardo Camavinga.
