‘Not bad for a Championship player’: Jude Bellingham on his remarkable rise

Bellingham starred for Dortmund again on Wednesday night against Man City despite the club’s exit from Europe

Bellingham has announced himself as a teenage superstar (Getty Images)

Borussia Dortmund and England star Jude Bellingham gave a cheeky response when asked to reflect on his rapid ascent to playing in the Champions League quarter-finals.

The 17-year-old produced another superb display for the German side on Wednesday despite their exit from the tournament at the hands of Manchester City.

Bellingham opened the scoring to make him the youngest ever English scorer in the competition’s history, before City turned the tie around to win 4-2 on aggregate. And the former Birmingham City man, who played 41 times in the Championship last season, responded brilliantly when asked bout his sharp, meteoric rise to the top of the game.

Bellingham told BT Sport: “Not bad for a Championship player eh?

“I think I've taken every game in my stride, I had a bit of a tough start away at Lazio and then since then I think all of my best performances in BVB colours have come in the Champions League, including tonight.

“For me it’s brilliant to play in this competition and for this club, it’s a huge honour, so I can take a little bit away from that and learn from it but I’m still gutted we didn’t make it through.”

Bellingham has been inspired for Dortmund so far this season, featuring 39 times in all competitions. And despite his age, the Stourbridge-born midfielder has earned himself two England caps off the back of those superb performances for his club.

It remains unclear whether he will be included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the Euros though, with similar players such as Jack Grealish, Jesse Lingard, James Ward-Prowse and James Maddison also clambering for a place.

Dortmund face an almighty challenge to qualify for the Champions League again next season. With just six games remaining in the Bundesliga, Bellingham and co currently sit seven points off fourth-place Eintracht Frankfurt.