Sitting alone in the away dugout of Werder Bremen’s Weserstadion, his breath clouding the air like steam driven from only the most powerful of locomotives, Jude Bellingham waits patiently to speak to the TV cameras. It is little wonder they have asked for the Borussia Dortmund midfielder, the star of a 2-0 victory here in north-west Germany.
He fiddles briefly with some strapping around the left knee which is said to be troubling him. Not that you would know. At his feet are half-drunk bottles of water, torn energy sachets and scraps of paper, once the preserve of tactical instruction.