Jordan Henderson says Jude Bellingham is loved by his teammates and will be England’s X-factor at the World Cup.

Bellingham, who is vying with Morgan Rogers to start at No 10 against Croatia on Wednesday, has been the subject of plenty of debate at international level during the past two years. There has been speculation about the Real Madrid star’s relationship with Thomas Tuchel, but Henderson is close with the midfielder and insists there is no issue with his attitude.

“I’m sure he will have a big impact for us in this tournament,” Henderson said. “I can remember five years ago I gave him his first cap, it was away at Middlesbrough. How much he’s grown, as a player and as a person since then, is incredible really. I had a good idea when I first saw him playing and training, and the way he was.

“I think everybody forgets how young he is. We do rondos and it’s the youngest in, and there’s people that I think should be going in before him, but he’s always one of the first in the middle to go in. It just reminds us how young he is. I honestly couldn’t speak highly enough of him.

“I know a lot gets written in the media and I really find it hard to read sometimes because I just know how big an influence he is on this team, how good a teammate he is off the field. And what he gives us is just something really special, he really gives us the X-factor in our team. He’s had big moments in his career, he’s a big game player, he’s got experience in tournaments, so he’s a huge, huge player for us in this tournament.”

Henderson insisted that external perceptions of Bellingham as a divisive influence are inaccurate. Bellingham was praised for looking after Alex Scott, Ethan Nwaneri, Rio Ngumoha and Josh King when the youngsters were part of England’s pre-tournament training camp.

“If you ask any player in the group, they’ll tell you how much of a good teammate he is, how well he trains,” Henderson said. I know he’s young but he’s very mature. He helps young players, new players, that are coming in. How he was in the pre-camp with Rio, Josh King, Alex Scott, Ethan, how he is with those players, nobody sees that, but they all look up to him.

“He gave Rio his first cap after the game, which just gives you a little insight into what he is like behind the scenes. I do think a lot of the media and the stuff that gets written isn’t all true to be honest, or a lot of it is actually untrue. But for us we all know what he can do, and how much we all love him inside the camp, and I suppose that’s the main thing.”

Henderson addressed the battle between Bellingham and Rogers to start. “It doesn’t mater if you’re starting or coming on, everyone has a role,” he said. “I see it as two top players who I wouldn’t want to be playing against – so good on and off the ball, athletic and physical, can score and have it in their locker to produce big moments. They’re very close and will support each other 100%. They’ve both got a big role to play.”