Bellingham message gives girl with cancer a 'bit of happy time'

Avid footballer Madison had been "feeling down" about not being able to play, said her father

A message from Jude Bellingham, sent as he left the World Cup in Qatar, gave a 12-year-old girl with cancer a "bit of happy time", her father said.

Twelve-year-old Madison, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia two weeks ago.

Her father, Richard, said England star Bellingham, Madison's favourite player, sent her the video message as he and the team made their way home.

"[She was] absolutely over the moon," he said.

"She wanted to tell all her friends, she was absolutely elated by it. That kind message gave her a bit of a happy time, if you like, and it's something she's watched over and over and over."

Nineteen-year-old Borussia Dortmond player Bellingham said he had heard what Madison had been going through.

"I just wanted to let you know that we're all behind you. Keep fighting, stay strong, and you'll get through it," he told her.

Around 790 people are diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in the UK each year, with the majority of cases in children and young adults.

Madison, who plays for Nuneaton Borough Girls, says Jude Bellingham is her favourite player

Richard said his football-mad daughter, who plays for Nuneaton Borough Girls, was diagnosed at Birmingham Children's Hospital.

"The sickness is there after chemotherapy, etc, so it's quite tough times. There's up days and there's down days," he said. "But there is good hope, that's the main thing, there is good hope at the end of this."

"The local football team that she plays for, the support from that local football team is absolutely overwhelming as well," he added.

Bellingham, a former Birmingham City player from Stourbridge, and the England team left Qatar after their quarter final loss to France on Saturday.