Vinicius Jr or Jude Bellingham? Real Madrid legend Fernando Morientes picks his La Liga 2023-24 Player of the Season
On Sunday, May 26, La Liga will draw its curtains on another captivating season, impregnated with many compelling narratives. From Real Madrid's near-flawless campaign to Girona's fairytale quest for a coveted Champions League berth, the Spanish league will have plenty to absorb over the summer break. However, the debates surrounding standout individual performances have primarily divided opinions.
While Artym Dovbyk spearheaded Girona's surge with an outstanding 21-goal tally, Los Blancos enjoyed contributions across the pitch. Vinicius Jr, with his electrifying pace and silky-smooth dribbles, hammered home 15 goals and registered six assists in the league. Meanwhile, Villarreal's Alexander Sorloth leads the goalscoring charts after his four-goal haul against Los Blancos on the weekend.
Yet, Fernando Morientes, an elite striker himself and a Real Madrid legend, emphasized during an end-of-season global media conference arranged by La Liga that his choice for the player of the season lay outside the above-mentioned trio as he named Jude Bellingham.
"Dovbyk's season has been very good although he has had some ups and downs. But now, we've seen Sorloth overtake him in the top-scorer table, so it's going to boil down to the final matchday. Vinicius has also had a spectacular season, but I would choose [Jude] Bellingham," the former AS Monaco and Liverpool forward told reporters.
After securing a move to Real Madrid from Borussia Dortmund last summer, Bellingham, 20, set the Spanish league alight with 25 goal contributions in 37 games, including 19 goals and six assists, as Los Blancos cruised to their 36th league title.
Morientes averred that Bellingham's ability to adapt to these foreign conditions and announce himself as a linchpin of the Madrid attack is what has stood out.
"He's a new player in La Liga and at Real Madrid, and there's a lot of pressure when that happens. He's very young too. He's been fighting for the top goalscorer of the year, for the Pichichi Award. His first half of the season was amazing but he's had some ups and downs, which is normal for any player," he stated.
"But I think that his adaptation has been extraordinary. The hardest thing for a player, when they join a new league, new culture, different language, different climates, and different food, is adapting. And he's shown that his adaptation has been fantastic, which is something that all clubs look for new players," the Spaniard added.
What makes Jude Bellingham stand out? Fernando Morientes answers
Before moving to Madrid, throughout his budding career, Bellingham had established himself as an elite box-to-box midfielder. At Dortmund, his creative flair in the final third was particularly on display. But none would've envisioned in a matter of months, he would be sitting on a staggering 35-goal-contribution tally through a season, with two games still to be played.
Following the impending departure of Karim Benzema, Bellingham, tasked with shouldering the goalscoring burden, defied expectations and seamlessly transitioned into an unfamiliar role as a shadow striker under Carlo Ancelotti's tutelage.
Fernando Morientes, in response to a Sportskeeda query, discussed in detail what made Bellingham an absolute world-beater through the 2023-24 season.
"One of the aptitudes or characteristics of Bellingham has been his physique. You need to have a powerful physique if you play as a midfielder. If you look at his statistics, or you compare them with other midfielders, who are normally the players that will run the most kilometers in a football match, Bellingham has shown that he's not just a good midfielder who can create opportunities. But also as a young player, he has added something more to his game as a midfielder. He's managed to get to the penalty area from the second line," he elaboarated.
"If we were to ask ourselves at the beginning of the season whether Bellingham would have been the top scorer in Real Madrid, few people would have thought that he would have scored so many goals. They would have thought more of Rodrygo, Vinicius, or even Joselu - the strikers - but Bellingham has shown that he has added facets to his abilities as a player and that's amazing at his age," Morientes continued.
With rumors swirling of Kylian Mbappe's imminent arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu, the abilities and fluidity that Bellingham showcased through the season, make him an indispensable asset for stabilizing their attack.
Morientes believed the Stourbridge-born midfielder had presented Ancelotti with a happy headache of deciding among the roles the English international was capable of playing.
"I'm sure that Ancelotti is even happier because he can continue to play Bellingham without any problem," he stated.