JUDE BELLINGHAM moved on from his England snub by visiting a Madrid zoo with friends as he fed giraffes and faced off with tigers.
The Real Madrid star has been having some time off during the international break after being left out of Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions squad.
It has been a difficult time for the 22-year-old, who is building up his fitness after returning from a shoulder injury last month.
And he has also been hit by news that he won’t be included in the 2026 Real Madrid calendar, despite being present in this year’s edition.
The former Borussia Dortmund star instead brushed off the recent setbacks by enjoying a day out with pals at the local zoo, Safari Madrid, in the Spanish capital.
Bellingham shared a story with his 40million Instagram followers showing him feeding a branch to giraffes with a friend.
He captioned the story: “What an experience!” and tagged the official Safari Madrid page.
Bellingham’s friend also posted a picture from their day out as he shared a photo of the pair peering through a cage where two tigers were staring back at them.
The player will now be turning his attention to resuming LaLiga duties ahead of Madrid’s next game away at Getafe on October 19.
Bellingham has only started one game since returning from injury, which came in a shock 5-2 defeat to rivals Atletico Madrid on September 27.
In the following two games – a 5-0 win over Kairat and a 3-1 victory over Villarreal – he came on as a substitute.
SunSport reported this week how Bellingham was dumped from the 2026 calendar, a bizarre move that will set tongues wagging about his future.
However, manager Xabi Alonso insisted he “needed” Bellingham’s quality when asked about the fitness of the midfielder last month.
He said: “I need his flexibility and versatility. Some players are more static, and Jude is not one of them.”
And his international manager Tuchel was also forced to reaffirm how highly he rated Bellingham after leaving him out of his England squad for games against Wales and Latvia.
The German said: “Jude is a very special player and for special players there can be special rules but for this camp, we thought to stick with our decision to stick with the same team.
“There is an extra layer in that he has not fully gathered rhythm and has not finished a full match until now and has only started one match.
“Do I believe we’re a stronger team with Jude? Yes. Is he one of the best players in the world in midfield? Yes.
“But what are we doing if a player like Jude is injured before the World Cup? Do we not travel?”
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