Real Madrid-bound Jude Bellingham set to withdraw from England squad amid fears knee surgery will be required on injury suffered at Borussia Dortmund

• Bellingham may need surgery on knee injury
• Will miss England games in mid-June
• Hoping to be fit for start of pre-season

WHAT HAPPENED? Bellingham is in the form of his life and was a vital part of Borussia Dortmund taking the Bundesliga title race to the last day, however, he is set to face a spell on the sidelines after suffering an injury to his right knee. The injury in question kept him out of Dortmund's final game of the season against Mainz, meaning he had to watch the drama unfold from the bench.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The injury means that Bellingham is set to miss out on England's two Euro 2024 qualifying matches in June, and the Daily Mail reports that he may require surgery in order to fully recover. He has started the last 10 matches for the Three Lions and is becoming one of the first names on Gareth Southgate's teamsheet, so will undoubtedly be a miss against Malta and North Macedonia.

AND WHAT'S MORE: The injury is unlikely to disrupt the midfielder's proposed move to Real Madrid, which is set to be announced in the coming weeks. The two clubs have struck a deal worth £108 million ($133m), with £87m ($107.4m) guaranteed and a further £21m ($26m) in performance-related add-ons.

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WHAT NEXT FOR BELLINGHAM? The Dortmund star will hope to recover quickly in order to report for pre-season duty at Real Madrid, who are set to start preparations for the 2023-24 campaign in July.