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Borussia Dortmund will beat a number of elite clubs to the punch in the chase for Birmingham City starlet Jude Bellingham, according to a large number of reports this morning.

The Bundesliga side will add another young 'mega-talent' - Bellingham - to their young ranks according to Bild and ESPN, amongst others.

Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Dortmund have all been named as teams interested in Bellingham, but Dortmund are believed to be the front-runners in the chase - by some distance.

The youngster will not be taking part in tonight's FA Cup clash with Leicester, but will be set to play an important part in the remainder of the campaign for Birmingham City.

It is believed that Bellingham has visited Dortmund's training facilities ahead of a summer move, and left impressed - a familiar scenario for anyone Dortmund attempt to purchase.

What's more, the Blues youngster would become their record transfer, with Dortmund willing to eclipse the signing of Mats Hummels by paying up to 35 million euros for the player.

Bellingham would not be heading to the Bundesliga as an unknown prospect - he has made over 30 Championship appearances for Birmingham City this season, and the Blues man has enjoyed a starring role across the front and in the middle of the park.

(Image: TIM EASTHOPE/BIRMINGHAM MAIL)

The outlook of the potential transfer deal is not too unlike the signing of another wonderkid - Erling Braut Haaland. Haaland had visited a number of clubs before signing with Dortmund, and was the subject of a large pack hunt in the transfer market.

There is a bit of a difference when we reflect on the situation of Jadon Sancho though, who left Manchester City to become a star at Dortmund.

Unlike Haaland or Bellingham, the English wing-wonder hadn't yet started for his side. American wonderkids Christian Pulisic and Giovanni Reyna broke through the mold at BVB as well - with Pulisic emerging as the United State's main hope in international football, while Reyna is impressing as a 17-year-old in Germany's top tier.

"We don't buy superstars, we create them." were the words of BVB youth co-ordinator Lars Ricken , and it's hard to argue.

While talents with high performance levels are snapped up at a young age, players do make their name at Dortmund at a high level rather quickly - including Haaland, Reyna and Sancho, who have taken great leaps forward in a short space of time.

Jude Bellingham could be the next one. Remember the name that Blues fans already know well