Jude Bellingham has hit out at criticism of England and referenced "rubbish" from outside in discussing his celebration against Slovakia at Euro 2024 on Sunday.
The 21-year-old midfielder hit a brilliant overhead kick deep into added time in Gelsenkirchen to force extra time and Harry Kane's header shortly after the restart saw England complete a 2-1 victory from the jaws of defeat.
After scoring his goal, Bellingham ran to the pitch and shouted "Who else?" towards the stands and made a talking gesture with his hands.
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Asked afterwards about the celebration, he said: “The adrenaline gets you. “It’s a combination of a lot of things. Playing for England is an enjoyable feeling but it’s also a lot of pressure. You hear people talk a lot of rubbish. It’s nice when you can deliver and give them a little bit back.
“It’s very difficult when you talk in press conferences and interviews to talk as openly as footballers want to because they’re always judged. For me, football, being on the pitch, scoring goals and celebrating is my release. Maybe it was a message to a few people. I was very happy at the end, lots of adrenaline.
“It’s a feeling that is like no other. In international football, in knockout football, it’s even a worse feeling, because you’re 30 seconds from going home.
“Having to listen to all the rubbish, feeling like you have let a nation of people down. In one kick of the ball, everything can change.”
Asked what he meant by the “rubbish”, the 21-year-old said: “You know what I mean by the rubbish.
“Playing for England should be the most proud moment of your career but often it’s quite difficult. There’s a really high intense pressure. The fans expect a lot from us regardless of what happened in recent tournaments years and years ago.
“People talk a lot. You do have to take it personally a little bit. We work so hard at this game. We come in every day, we work hard to put on a performance for the fans, sometimes it doesn’t go well and sometimes it feels like there’s a bit of a pile on, it’s not nice to hear.
“But you can always use it and for moments like that, it’s nice to throw it back to some people.”
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