Exclusive: Don Goodman reveals whether Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham will ever return to Birmingham City | OneFootball

The Real Madrid ace featured heavily in Blues' new stadium unveiling last week

Sky Sports pundit and EFL expert, Don Goodman, believes a return to Birmingham City for current Real Madrid and England sensation, Jude Bellingham, cannot be ruled out over time.

The club's future plans ever since Knighthead Capital Management initially took over from Birmingham Sports Holdings Limited (BSHL) in the summer 2023 have been well-documented and have continuously gathered pace over the course of the past two-and-a-half seasons at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.

However, they were laid bare for all to see on the afternoon of Thursday, November 20th, when Tom Wagner publicly unveiled plans for Blues' upcoming 62,000-seater stadium as part of the East Birmingham Sports Quarter development, with the West Midlands side's new home to be called the 'Powerhouse'.

The stadium's unique design certainly has split opinion, featuring 12 chimneys that will be visible for up to 40 miles away, according to architects in the form of Heatherwick Studio and MANICA, as they pay tribute to the Second City's industrial heritage, with the upcoming development set to lay on land currently housed by the derelict Birmingham Wheels BMX track and, formerly, a brickworks site during the time of the industrial revolution.

Alongside the likes of Wagner and Birmingham's advisory board chairman and minority stakeholder, Tom Brady, Bellingham featured heavily within a five-minute-long reel which eventually showcased the aforementioned designs, as well as sending a subsequent message to supporters after the club's official 150th anniversary game was marked in style with a 4-1 success over Norwich City on Saturday afternoon.

As such, plenty of bluenoses have debated whether the 22-year-old could return to his boyhood club in the future if Wagner's on-pitch ambitions are realised alongside the new stadium.

Don Goodman issues Jude Bellingham, Birmingham City reunion prediction

Issuing such claims exclusively to Football League World, Goodman referenced how much of an inspirational figure the Three Lions and Real Madrid star is to those in this part of the world, having been the subject of £25m and €103m transfer moves to Borussia Dortmund and the Santiago Bernabéu since making 44 Championship appearances for Birmingham in 2019/20, after previously becoming the club's youngest-ever player and goalscorer in a two-week period back in August 2019.

"You could never say never with Jude Bellingham and a return to Birmingham City," the pundit told FLW.

"The fact they retired his shirt number is a huge honour that not many players get bestowed upon them," he added.

"Maybe that could be a factor in the future, obviously, with all the ambition being shown. The new stadium, investment in the playing side, maybe they'll be an established Premier League side by the time Jude Bellingham is ready to come back to England, who knows?

"You couldn't really see it for the foreseeable future, but you could never rule it out in the distant future," Goodman stated.

Jude Bellingham actions in Birmingham City 'Powerhouse' unveiling sparked return discourse

In what was an emotional and monumental unveiling for all associated with Birmingham last week, Bellingham was, unsurprisingly, one of those who saw the 'Powerhouse' plans before the vast majority, issuing his thoughts inside a hospitality suite in the Kop stand of St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.

After initially reacting with a stunned face and "wow", the UEFA Champions League and La Liga winner then asked those behind the camera when the new stadium would be completed, with many supporters reacting to the expression given by Bellingham when told the hope is it will be completed by the summer of 2030.

Of course, even right now, Blues are a completely different club to the one which he and his brother, Jobe, departed in recent times, with Wagner pumping huge sums of money into various departments, which has seen sell-out crowds, once again, become a by-weekly occurrence in B9 after several false dawns under Far-Eastern ownership groups.

The time must be right for the academy graduate if he does make an emotional return to the Midlands in due course, with Blues still having plenty of work to do in order to eventually become a major force in the English game, as they look to end a Premier League hiatus which has stood since May 2011 sooner rather than later.