It’s not only the records, Birmingham City’s youngest ever player and goalscorer, it’s not just the huge transfer fee which kept Blues afloat during a pandemic and it’s more than the 44 first team games he played for the club – but all these achievements certainly are factors that contribute to the everlasting affection Bluenoses have for Jude Bellingham.

They’ve seen the 20-year-old move to – and shine brighter than any other – in the Bundesliga and La Liga, they’ve seen him rise above all others in the Champions League. They’ve seen him announce himself to the planet at the World Cup in Qatar and they’ll see him as England’s poster boy at Euro 2024.

Indeed as the rest of the world bears witness to Bellingham’s talent, Blues supporters have known about it for years, from the moment he raced through the Under 18 and Under 23s set-ups to emerge as the best player in Pep Clotet’s senior squad, he’s been clearing hurdles without breaking stride.

Qatar 2022 did for Bellingham what Italia 90 did for Paul Gascoigne or what France 98 did for Michael Owen, made him impossible to ignore as the rest of football comes to understand Jude Bellingham is one of a kind – and that was obvious from Day One. Everyone will understand if he guides the Three Lions to European title in Germary. .

Bellingham actually broke Trevor Francis’ 50 year reign as the club’s youngest ever player in a Carabao Cup defeat at Portsmouth. He played well – better than any of his team-mates – but he was still on the wrong end of a 3-0 defeat.

His first league game also ended in a three-goal reverse, as he appeared for the final 14 minutes at Swansea City in August 2019. But it was almost as if the 16-year-old was waiting for the perfect moment to fully announce himself to his public as he ran out at St Andrew’s, for his home debut against Stoke City.