England international Bellingham was banned for that contest, as he serves a two-match suspension on the back of the controversial red card he picked up against Osasuna for supposedly telling the match referee to “f*ck off”.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
With the 21-year-old restricted to a spectator role, he took up a seat in the stands at Santiago Bernabeu alongside new girlfriend Ashlyn Castro. He was on his feet in the 41st minute of the contest in the Spanish capital, as Croatian veteran Modric opened the scoring in spectacular style.
DID YOU KNOW?
A corner was cleared in the direction of Modric as he loitered with intent 25 yards out. The 39-year-old Ballon d’Or winner cushioned the ball on his chest before sending a stunning volley fizzing into the top corner.
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WHAT JUDE BELLINGHAM SAID
Bellingham, who could only stand and applaud the scorching strike from his Madrid team-mate, posted on social media afterwards when reacting to another performance from Modric that suggests he may not be of this world: “From a different planet.”