After scoring yet another late winner to settle the final El Clasico of Real Madrid’s season, Jude Bellingham only had eyes for one group in the stands.

Clustered over the advertising boards on the very edge of the pitch were two of the England international’s closest friends – and with the men in his sight, Bellingham raced over to the stands and was immediately bundled into an excited bear hug.

Since the player’s blockbuster summer move to Real Madrid, both Noah Ohio and Toby Bishay have attended matches at the Bernabeu as frequently as their schedules allow, and have no doubt been delighted – along with the rest of the white side of the Spanish capital – by his prodigious start. They occupy two much envied spots in Bellingham’s exactingly tight inner circle – arguably one of the secrets to his success.

Far from being caught up in a swirl of parties and hangers on, the 20-year-old’s reaction to his superstardom has been to continue to rely on the close-knit group who have watched his rise from the youth ranks of Birmingham City: his parents Mark and Denise and younger brother Jobe, and a select group of friends and team-mates. While Bellingham doesn’t have a long-term partner, his relationships with girlfriends old and new have been conducted with scant details shared publicly.

Here, Mail Sport takes a look at those closest to the young talent, and their role in his meteoric career to date.

Deep family ties

After helping seal Real Madrid’s spot in the Champions League semi-final after burying his spot-kick during the penalty shoot-out against Manchester City, Bellingham left Rio Ferdinand spellbound.

‘How’s he answering these questions so eloquently?’ The Manchester United star turned pundit queried midway through his post-match interview. ‘Tell me, how old are you bro?’

‘Still 20’ was Bellingham’s almost bashful response, but Ferdinand wasn’t alone in his high regard for the starlet’s off-the-cuff remarks, with many on social media suggesting he had been exquisitely media-trained. Others, however, attributed his eloquence and calm disposition with the microphone to being raised by supportive and encouraging parents. Both his mother and father have long been the player’s strongest allies.

Bellingham has previously described his mother as playing ‘the biggest role’ in his career, ‘probably even more than coaches and managers’, due to her part in keeping him grounded.

Denise, 54, moved to Germany upon his signing with Borussia Dortmund in 2020, and has since travelled to live with him in Spain, where he keeps an apartment in Madrid’s upmarket La Finca district in the west of the capital. His father Mark, 48, has stuck by the side of his younger brother Jobe, moving to Sunderland with him when he signed for the Championship team shortly after his brother’s landmark transfer to Real last summer.

Bellingham’s mother helps manage his financial affairs, allowing for his focus to be solely on football, and has also pitched in with at times driving him to training, and even making his bed.

‘My mum is there to just keep everything neutral really,’ Bellingham said of their relationship.

‘Without my mum, sometimes I’d get too low with the lows or too high with the highs and I stay pretty humble because I’ve got her around.

‘It’s also great to have her there because she’s a great laugh as well. We get on so well and we’re always doing stuff together.’

His father Mark – a retired former policeman and ex-non league footballer once described as his son’s sporting ‘hero’ – has had a similarly grounding influence. He, like his wife, has also played a role in his son’s business affairs, and acts as his son’s manager, mastering minding his blockbuster £113million move to LaLiga from Dortmund.

Rounding out the quartet is Jobe, the ‘other’ Bellingham a fast-rising starlet with a not-so-shabby seven goals to his name in his maiden campaign for Sunderland. Just as the 18-year-old has attended Real Madrid matches – most recently with his whole family at the Etihad – Bellingham is equally supportive of his younger brother’s career, frequently sharing pictures from his travels supporting the Black Cats.

The picture shared publicly by Bellingham and his younger brother is one of an incredibly close family, and the Stourbridge native shared exactly how much their support means to him after that clash with Man City, saying how ‘beautiful’ it was that the three of them could watch together from the stands.

‘My brother was here today and it’s the first time he’s got to see me play for Madrid,’ Bellingham said. ‘I feel really proud about that kind of stuff, it’s the main part of why I do it to be honest.

‘I get a lot of fun from playing football but the idea of being able to play a game, come home to my mum and dad is one of the most important things and one of the things I love the most.’

Keeping childhood friends close – but expanding his circle at Real Madrid

Alongside his parents, Bellingham’s friends also regularly feature in the star’s social media presence. Bishay – who also grew up in Birmingham, like Bellingham – often travelled to Dortmund to watch his friend feature in the Bundesliga during his time in Germany, as well as frequently accompanying the player on group holidays during his summer and winter breaks.

When not globe-trotting with one of his closest friends, Bishay has parlayed his football-adjacent lifestyle into a lucrative business. His TBConcierge company helps secure everything Bellingham and his cohort could need, from private security, to luxury travel, and even restaurant bookings.

As well as Bellingham himself and his brother Jobe, fellow footballers who have also called upon TBConcierge’s services include Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Aston Villa recruit Morgan Rogers.

Bishay is another who has kept Bellingham’s feet off the ground, gently poking fun at the fact that the midfielder has ‘an ego that can be off the scale’ in an interview with the Times in 2022 – but stressing that he remains modest when it comes to his titanic achievements.

The other friend pitchside for Sunday’s El Clasico, Ohio, has a keener understanding of Bellingham’s pressures, as a footballer himself. The pair met during England’s youth set up, when the then-under-16s player was part of Manchester United’s academy.

Now representing Holland at international level, the 21-year-old is currently on loan at Hull City from Belgian side Standard Liege – and Bellingham has been keeping the closest of eyes on his progress in the Championship.

After Ohio scored his first goal for his new club in February, Bellingham was quick to text him, cheekily writing ‘congratulations and a good finish’ but that he ‘needed a few more to catch up with him’.

“He’s the best in the world but to me he’s just Jude. He’s been my best mate for four, five years now. We played for England Under-16s, that’s when we got close,’ Ohio told the Sun at the time.

‘It’s been nice to see the growth of him. I’m really proud – he’s a superstar.’

A 2021 interview suggested that Ohio had known it all along, when he cited his close friend as ‘the best under-21 player in world football’.

Bellingham’s close friendship group is rounded out by Stockport County’s Odin Bailey – who dragged the superstarlet back down to earth when he revealed Bellingham is hopeless at golf – his barber Adam Honeyghan, and team-mates he has grown close to in Madrid.

As per Tribuna, Brahim Diaz is thought to be a particularly good friend, with the Morocco international helping Bellingham learn Spanish and showing him the best places to hang out in the capital.

A ‘new girlfriend’ – with details strictly under wraps

Bellingham has always maintained the utmost privacy when it comes to his private life. His ex-girlfriend, Ghanian model Asantewa Chitty, never shared photographs on her social media of the player during their relationship, which is believed to have ended before his move to Madrid. It goes without saying that Bellingham did the same.

But news broke this week that Bellingham has since struck up a new relationship with Dutch influencer Laura Celia Valk, who is said to be ‘smitten’ with her new boyfriend.

‘Laura was quite loose in telling all the make-up artists about seeing him during her latest job,’ a source revealed to the Sun on Wednesday. ‘Practically everyone on set knew about it by the end of the day.

‘She’s been staying at his place in Madrid over the past few weekends and is completely smitten.’

The pair follow one another on Instagram – where her 307,000 followers are somewhat dwarfed by his 30,000,000 – and Bellingham is believed to have invited Valk to the Bernabeu to watch Real Madrid’s match against Athletic Bilbao at the end of March.

They are also alleged to have spent time at Madrid’s plush EDITION Hotel, where a superior room costs just over €1000 (£860) a night.

The Amsterdam-based model, 25, has previously worked for brands including UK retailer Pretty Little Thing, and is represented by digital talent management company 2nd LOOP.