Chris Davies reveals what Jude Bellingham called him when they met at Birmingham City | OneFootball

The Blues boss had an interesting conversation with the Real Madrid and England star during the recent friendly with Barcelona

Birmingham City manager Chris Davies has revealed exactly what he was called by former academy graduate and current Real Madrid plus England star, Jude Bellingham, who attended the club's high-profile friendly with Barcelona on July 31st.

For many clubs, pre-season friendlies are simply about building confidence, patterns of play and fitness levels ahead of the upcoming league season, but it is fair to say that Birmingham made the most of the publicity which came off the back of the fixture's announcement.

The match ended in a 2-2 draw between Blues and the Catalan giants, who were in the midst of a pre-season training camp at St George's Park.

August Priske and Jhon Solis were on the scoresheet for Birmingham in the 90 minutes, before the Championship side eventually 'won' the game on a penalty shootout.

Bellingham, of course, is one of the West Midlands' most famous sons at present, hailing from nearby Stourbridge, even though his love for Birmingham as a club and a city has been unwavering throughout his career.

Chris Davies reveals Jude Bellingham, 'gaffer' namedrop after Birmingham City, Barcelona clash

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The 23-year-old playmaker scored four times in just 44 appearances for Blues under Pep Clotet after becoming the club's youngest-ever player against Portsmouth in the EFL Cup seven years ago, before the club retired his '22' number ahead of his switch to Borussia Dortmund in 2020.

Bellingham has since won a plethora of accolades at a club and individual scale, as well as scoring seven times in the FIFA World Cup 2026 as England came third under Thomas Tuchel.

And, whilst taking a well-earned break from playing last month, whilst also taking in the performance of his brother, Jobe, for Dortmund against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, Bellingham had a pleasant conversation with the aforementioned Davies at St. Andrew's.

"I obviously met Jude Bellingham after the game," Davies told BBC Radio WM Sport.

"He called me 'gaffer', which was nice," he added.

"We had a little chat about their team and how we're doing and the progress we're making. To have him there was amazing."

When asked about the circulating images of Bellingham in Blues' new home shirt, Davies added: "Absolutely, yes. I think that went down a dream, didn't it.

"When I turned up, he had his Birmingham shirt on, I thought 'right, put a pair of shorts and socks on, and you can definitely join the squad!'"

Jude Bellingham's recent spell in Birmingham was well-documented

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Despite being one of the game's most global superstars at present, Bellingham has never lost sight of his roots and his upbringing in and around the Second City, meaning his return to Birmingham last month was well-documented.

The Three Lions midfielder clearly has a strong rapport with Blues' American investors, Knighthead Capital Management, having heavily featured in the video which unveiled the club's upcoming Powerhouse stadium as part of the Sports Quarter complex.

Furthermore, whilst Knighthead also own a majority stake in the Hundred cricket team, Birmingham Phoenix, Bellingham owns a 1.2% stake in the franchise, and was present for the matchup between the Phoenix and Welsh Fire, just hours after watching Blues take on Hansi Flick's team.

Jude Bellingham will be watching Birmingham City's Championship fortunes closely

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After finishing 10th last season, Birmingham will be hoping to make a more sustained bid for the Championship play-offs, and the chances of doing so have been enhanced by a restructure to the post-season promotion lottery.

Davies has made six additions to his squad so far, with the latest seeing Max Bird arrive from Bristol City, whilst the standout deal thus far was that of Solis, who returned from Girona on a permanent basis.

Given Knighthead's ambitions in B9, there will be an expectancy that, year-on-year, Blues get stronger and can eventually end their Premier League exile, which has stood since 2011.