Pundits make ‘scary’ Jobe Bellingham claim after seeing his ‘credentials’ in Sunderland’s defeat vs Leeds United

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Sunderland suffered defeat away at Leeds United on Monday night, but aside from the result, both Jamie O’Hara and Jason Cundy were very impressed with Jobe Bellingham.

Despite taking a 1-0 lead into the half-time break, Sunderland were unable to hold on to their advantage in a second half dominated by Leeds.

It was a game of fine margins that, unfortunately, Regis Le Bris’ men ended up on the wrong side of on the night.

But, there were some bright moments and positives to take from the defeat, with Jobe Bellingham receiving high praise in the aftermath.

• READ MORE: Gary Bennett offers damning verdict on major mistake Sunderland kept making vs Leeds United, it cost them the game

Jobe Bellingham is ‘scary’ similar to Jude, he’s destined for Premier League

Discussing the game on talkSPORT, O’Hara suggested Jobe is more than capable of playing at a higher level, and admitted he can’t believe how similar the Sunderland man is to his older brother, Jude.

O’Hara said: “He looks good enough when I watch him. I’ve not watched loads of him this season but he’s definitely got the credentials to play Premier League football. It’s scary how similar he plays to his brother. I know they’re genetically brothers but they play so similar.”

Cundy added: “It is scary. The Neville brothers [Gary and Phil] didn’t look like these two do… the way they run.”

“He’s obviously got the potential to be a top player,” O’Hara concluded.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	LeedsLeeds	33	21	9	3	68	20	48	72
2	Sheff UtdSheffield Utd	33	22	6	5	47	23	24	70
3	BurnleyBurnley	33	17	14	2	39	9	30	65
4	SunderlandSunderland	33	17	11	5	50	30	20	62
5	BlackburnBlackburn	33	15	6	12	39	31	8	51
6	West BromWest Brom	33	11	15	7	42	31	11	48

And, analysing the outcome of the game — one which Daniel Farke believes Leeds deserved to win — Cundy insisted a draw would have probably been a fairer result, but picked out one major flaw in the Black Cats’ performance.

“It’s a bit of a body blow that one. To lose it the way [Sunderland] did and to play so well in the first half,” he said. “A point probably would’ve been the fair result for both. Sunderland were the better side in the first half and Leeds were better in the second. But if you can’t defend those wide balls you’re going to cause yourself problems.”

• READ MORE: Daniel Farke notes the tactical switch that outfoxed Sunderland and Regis Le Bris in ‘well-deserved’ Leeds United win

Jobe Bellingham needs to recapture his best form, he’s got another level

Bellingham might have received the plaudits of the talkSPORT duo, and he didn’t have a bad game by any means, but he’s certainly not been at his influential best of late.

On his day, Bellingham is such an important player for Sunderland. But, have we really seen his top level in the last few games, or in 2025 even?

Perhaps he’s a victim of his own high standards, but the fact Bellingham hasn’t scored or provided an assist since before Christmas is very telling of the fact something isn’t quite right.

There’s talk of Bellingham becoming a record sale for Sunderland, and there’s no doubt he is going to the very top eventually, but hopefully he can unlock that next level in his game before he goes.