Sancho helped 17y/o Jude settle in at BVB... now, they'll meet again at Wembley

With the Champions League final being staged at Wembley, it's only fitting some Englishmen are on the pitch.

Given he plays for Real Madrid, there was always a reasonable chance Jude Bellingham would grace this showpiece occasion under the Arch on June 1.

The fact Jadon Sancho will be lining up against him for Borussia Dortmund is something nobody saw coming a few months ago.

The pair are, of course, former Dortmund team-mates and get on well off the field, with Sancho - four years the elder - helping Bellingham settle in when he moved to Germany as a 17-year-old in 2020.

Indeed, the success of Sancho following his own move to Germany as a teenager and his quick elevation to regular first-team football were key factors in Bellingham deciding to sign there rather than Manchester United or elsewhere.

The intervening years have seen very different career trajectories for the English duo.

Bellingham, now 20, has seen his stock rise continually to the point where he is almost certainly the world's best young player.

Having excelled during three seasons at Dortmund, Bellingham has taken an £88million move to Europe's most successful club in one of his long strides.

He could end his first Bernabeu season with a LaLiga and Champions League double, having made numerous decisive contributions, and a host of personal accolades will surely follow.

In the summer, he will carry England's hopes at Euro 2024 on his young shoulders and yet Bellingham plays like he feels no burden.

When Man United paid £73m to buy Sancho from Dortmund in 2021, the winger was one of Europe's hottest talents and it seemed a match made in heaven.

Unfortunately, Sancho's career has come off the rails, with uninspiring form, mental health concerns and a fall-out with