Tottenham scouts will have their eyes glued to a top-of-the-table clash in the Championship tonight. Leeds and Sunderland will be desperate to gain an advantage in the Premier League promotion scrap when they meet at Elland Road.
Jobe Bellingham has been one of the stand-out players in the second tier this season. Spurs have reportedly watched most of his games this season. The north Londoners will be keen to see how he performs against strong opposition.
Bellingham, the brother of Real Madrid and England star Jude, has scored four goals and provided three assists in 28 Championship appearances this season. The 19-year-old struck seven goals the year before, his first campaign at Sunderland after joining from Birmingham.
The versatile star has played in a number of positions, just like his brother. He has mostly played as a central midfielder but is also comfortable in more advanced areas, and has even featured as a centre-forward.
Spurs and Premier League rivals Crystal Palace, who Express Sport understands harboured a summer interest last year, will be keen to see how Bellingham performs at Elland Road.
Former Spurs talent spotter Mick Brown told Football Insider: “I think Sunderland would let him (Bellingham) go if they got a good price for him. Especially if they don’t get promoted this season, they’re going to listen to offers.
“Crystal Palace and Tottenham have had scouts watching him this season so they’ll be two of the teams in the running if he is going to leave. So it’ll be up to them to assess whether he’s ready to make that jump.
“From a Sunderland point of view, knowing the way the owners want to operate, I think if they get a huge bid for him then they’ll let him go.“
Sunderland have a number of young players who may be eyed by Premier League clubs if they fail to win promotion to the Premier League. The Black Cats are fourth, seven points off second-placed Leeds. It looks likely that they may need to go up via the play-offs.
Seventeen-year-old midfielder Chris Rigg is highly rated. Manchester United and Newcastle are said to have tracked his progress over the past couple of years.
Palace and Brighton chased wide man Tommy Watson in January but neither top-flight club could agree a deal with Sunderland. Bellingham, Rigg and Watson could land Sunderland a huge pay day in the summer.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk