Football
Bellerín doesn’t want to return to Arsenal after fulfilling his dream at Betis. Players plan crowdfunding
Hector Bellerín and Betis, a history full of love and childhood dreams. The right-back had a great season in the south of Spain and fulfilled the dream of his father, a lifelong Betis fan, who dreamed of seeing his son play in the green and white jersey. But now he doesn’t want to go back to England.
Hector Bellerín and Betis, a history full of love and childhood dreams. The right-back had a great season in the south of Spain and fulfilled the dream of his father, a lifelong Betis fan, who dreamed of seeing his son play in the green and white jersey. But now he doesn’t want to go back to England.
Bellerín started his career at Barcelona, but left for Arsenal in 2011. There he spent 3 years in the youth team before eventually working his way up to the A-team, spending 10 years in total in north London.
In the summer he was looking for a way out of Arsenal and had plenty of offers. But he didn’t choose based on finances or sporting goals and, somewhat surprisingly, headed to Betis. After all, his father is a lifelong Verdiblancos fan and it was his dream to see his son play at the Benito Villamarín.
Moreover, Betis fans are among the best in Spain and the atmosphere in the stadium is crazy.
“Everybody is banging on the bus, there are flares everywhere, people are always coming out into the streets. A friend of mine from England came to see me and he couldn’t believe what was going on. When they sing the anthem at Betis, I have to say I’ve never heard the stadium sing the anthem like that in my life. Never. My grandfather is not even a Betis fan and it made him cry because the harmony here… You see everyone with their hands up, with scarves, it’s something completely different,” Bellerín assessed the atmosphere in Andalusia in January.
the 27-year-old back came to Betis on a one-year loan from Arsenal, which can be judged as a good one. Bellerín helped to win the Copa Del Rey, Betis qualified again for the Europa League, in which they crashed out in the eighth round to runners-up Frankfurt.
After the last game of the season at the Benito Villamarín, Bellerín bid farewell to the stadium and the fans. After the end of the season his loan spell ends and he returns to Arsenal. But he fell in love with the club so much at Betis that he doesn’t want to return to England. He has become the darling of both the fans and his teammates in the locker room.
At the end of the Granada game, Bellerín returned to the pitch for a touching hug with his father, whose dream he had fulfilled. At the same time, he also said goodbye to the fans, who begged him to continue wearing the green and white jersey.
“This is the story of a footballer whose father dreamed of seeing his son play for Real Betis. He arrived, won the Copa del Rey and fell in love with the 13 stripes (Betis’ emblem) forever. Puro Betis,” the club wrote on Twitter about the touching video.
Bellerín’s future is still unclear. He will currently return to Arsenal, where he has one more year left on his contract. Whether the Gunners will give him problems or let him leave for an acceptable amount is not yet certain.
But if Arsenal set a figure above the Verdiblancos’ means, it might not be the end of hopes. Bellerín’s two best mates at Betis, Borja Iglesias and Aitor Rubial, have come up with an original solution.
“Listen up! Shall we open crowdfunding to keep Hector? What do you say, Aitor?” suggested Betis’ second top scorer to joint funding. “It’s necessary,” replied Rubial.
The Betis fans loved Bellerín so much that they immediately agreed to the joint funding and would like to bring him permanently to the Benito Villamarín.
Of course that won’t be necessary, Betis are certainly not in any economic crisis, although logically the budgets of English teams are hard to fight.
Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos couldn’t help but notice Bellerín’s touching moment. He is, in fact, linked to both actors of the situation. He grew up playing football at Betis and is still proudly wearing their colours, while he became very friendly with Bellerín during his time at Arsenal and they even promised to play for Betis together one day.
“Pepe and Hector Bellerín. So much beticism in one photo. An example of affection and love for the club,” Ceballos wrote on Twitter.
Source: Twitter, Real Betis