🇧🇪 Romelu Lukaku

[Stats 7,142]

He is 20 and might have areas of improvement but we have the chance of winning the league this season with strikers who are inferior to Lukaku IMO. Eto'o has turned up in big games but he has been rather inconsistent in many games himself. Lukaku has 12 goals in 21 starts this season and he is likely to beat his goal tally which he had for WBA last season. That is rather impressive and I believe there are many games where if he was playing he would have proved a decisive difference.

People keep mentioning his flaws and as someone else pointed out, they seem to ignore his strengths. He is absolute handful for most defenders. His hold up play is not even as bad as some think. He has 6 PL assists for a reason so he has many elements to his game. In the summer he will have 2 full seasons of playing PL football. He deserves a chance. Maybe he is not ready to be first choice striker but maybe he is. His goal tally will suggest he is and he has proven he can score and make an impact in big matches as well.

Every year as shown his goal tally looks to get better and I think that also helps when he has played with better teams. WBA to Everton is a better loan because Everton are a better team so surely when he is with us he will get goals. I think any world class striker who joins us may struggle. They might not but over the years the striking position apart from Drogba has not been one we have looked at with success.

He is doing what ahs been asked of him which is scoring goals. Yes, his first touch, defensive awareness may need improvement but he is a striker and scores goals which is what I want and has provided assists for his teammates as well.

There is a reason that Martinez described him as an "irreplaceable footballer" earlier this month and how he believes he is a complete no.9 and btw he is the manager who has been working with him this season and got Everton competing for the CL top 4 so I would be aligned to trust what he says.

Just think people should give him more credit on here.

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11671/9189398/premier-league-everton-boss-roberto-martinez-praises-romelu-lukaku

[bushman 2,043]

What about if Lukaku were given a chance to play & him turns out well? He certainly could be a 2nd striker.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

I also laugh at the "but he'll get less space and scoring opportunities at Chelsea" argument popping up occasionally.

It makes absolutely no sense. You think every team plays defensively only at the Bridge?

As I said before, there's a much better midfield behind him here. Also, with a beast like Lukaku up front keeping defenders busy, there's less of them to look at for example Hazard. As I also said before, even Torres gets his share of scoring opportunities here, and when he's on the pitch, you're playing with 10.

[Stats 7,142]

Few Everton fans I know have been saying he hasn't really improved since the start of the season. To quickly summarise what they've said:

- Frustrating in most games but will look good on MOTD because he's scored

- Doesn't really fit into their system unless they play direct

- Always trying to play for himself. ie not making clever runs or positioning himself that will create space for his teammates.

- Often not involved in their build up, and is inconsistent on the ball when he gets it

However they can't stress enough that he's only 20, can improve and be really good in the RIGHT system. Is our system the right system for Romelu though? That and his flaws make me a bit worried about his future here. You can say he's only young and will improve, but how often do you see a young player develop dramatically in terms of footballing intelligence and technical ability?

Majority of Everton fans love him and believe he has been a revelation. The minority of Everton fans will say that because he certainly does not play for himself. That is weird that they said he does not fit into their style unless they play direct as Everton like to play on the floor and most of his goals have been from counter attacking play of on the floor. Martinez is a very much possession based manager and he highlighted how important Lukaku is to Everton.

Interesting read btw: http://eplindex.com/51588/chelseas-lukaku-dilemma-daniel-sturridge-redux.html

[The Mak 4,459]

I've stayed away from this topic for a while now because it was frustrating to see people acting like they were judging a finished article instead of a work in progress.

Personally, I think some of the lines taken by the critics are insane. Romelu does have weaknesses, yes, and I do acknowledge that just because he is young these will automatically drastically improve over time. However, I do believe to focus on these weaknesses is far, far too overstated.

What I can almost guarantee Romelu will improve with time is his decision making, which makes up a massive part of a strikers game. We're still viewing a striker who is yet to truly discover how he exactly wants to play. He can still improve, but when he eventually matures (and by that I mean him knowing the type of striker he is - knowing his limitations but also focusing and refining his strengths) we will see a lot less of 'sloppy' aspects of we associate with this extremely young striker's game.

Another thing I will say is where were all the top strikers at Romelu's age? How many goals were they scoring a season in their respective leagues?

• Drogba at Le Mans, 7 goals.
• Suarez at Groningen, 10 goals.
• Falcao at River Plate, 3 goals.
• Cavani at Palermo, 5 goals.

And Romelu?

• Lukaku at WBA, 17 goals
• Lukaku at Everton, 12 goals (and counting).

Now I know it isn't as simple as this, there are external factors of course like their positions. However, the point in relation to their development still stands: they were nowhere near the finished article. I would imagine the amount of people criticising those strikers at that age hadn't a clue how good they would be.

Lukaku is playing in the PL, so I do not think we should be judging him too harshly just yet - we know his qualities, but from that we're not even 100% sure what type of striker he'll be. Hell, Rooney couldn't win a header to save his life until the age of around 24/25 and he went on to score quite a lot with his head in the 09-11 seasons. I'm sure Romelu has the ability to improve such aspects under the right tutelage (Drogba soon perhaps?).

So simply saying 'he doesn't suit us' when he's never made a proper start for us is crazy. He'll have quality players around him who he'll grown to know, understand and develop alongside. He'll be one of the very best second strikers next season if he stays and I believe a lot of this judgement should be reserved until then, at the very least.

[Fernando 6,585]

if Mou can turn drogba to be a monster,,why it can't happen to lukaku. all we need is just believe "gold hand" of Mou...

But Mou could not turn Torres into a monster.....

It's all about the player attitude and mentality.

Look how Azpi has turned? So you either have the mental fortitude or your a weak minded.

[Pizy 18,909]

Now that Ba has confirmed he's off in the summer (as if we didn't know that already) that's one down and one to go. Now if we can get rid of Torres we'd be golden.

I'd be happy with a striker force of Costa/Lukaku/Eto'o. But by all accounts it seems like Eto'o wants to join one of his former clubs to see out his career. Maybe we'll luck out and we'll see more than one new striker brought in.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

But Mou could not turn Torres into a monster.....

It's all about the player attitude and mentality.

Look how Azpi has turned? So you either have the mental fortitude or your a weak minded.

I don't think anyone can question his mentality or work ethic. Did anyone ever spot a single gossip article about him partying or getting drunk in one of the tabloids? It's because he doesn't. He takes his job very seriously. That's why he left the club he loved for another year because he (correctly) thought more playing time would make him a better player.

[Eggman 118]

There is no player with better "attitude" than Lukaku. Definitely not at his age. He works hard and is really fanatical. He lives for his game, and is constantly trying to improve himself - he is self-critical, despite being self-conscious at the same time.

Wasn't it Lukaku who watched every PL-game in order to study the movements of strikers and so on?

If Mou wants someone who will work for him, then Lukaku is da shiznit.

Edit: what Johnny said.

[Fernando 6,585]

I don't think anyone can question his mentality or work ethic. Did anyone ever spot a single gossip article about him partying or getting drunk in one of the tabloids? It's because he doesn't. He takes his job very seriously. That's why he left the club he loved for another year because he (correctly) thought more playing time would make him a better player.

Well the same can be said about KDB, a very nice guy but a weak mentally character.

Not even like Azpi or Schurrle who fought for their places.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

Well the same can be said about KDB, a very nice guy but a weak mentally character.

Not even like Azpi or Schurrle who fought for their places.

How did he not fight for his place? Did he skip training sessions to play fifa? Did he gain 20 pounds eating burgers? There were an awful lot of players for his position and he was José's least favorite one so he got practically no chances. You can't spend a whole year in the stands during a world cup year if you're an essential player for an outsider team.

[Fernando 6,585]

How did he not fight for his place? Did he skip training sessions to play fifa? Did he gain 20 pounds eating burgers? There were an awful lot of players for his position and he was José's least favorite one so he got practically no chances. You can't spend a whole year in the stands during a world cup year if you're an essential player for an outsider team.

Sorry but Azpi was not figured into Mourinho at the beginning of the season and he fought for his place.

Schurrle was a ghost for a half a season and has found his way back in his team by hard training and such.

KDB could not cut it and ran way. Weak mental characters, nothing more.

[Eligius 121]

Jay Rodriguez - scores goals, works his bollocks off in a high pressing game, good on the ball, English.

Loic Remy - scores goals.

Not saying they're definitely better, but worth a look.

Remy perfect player for counter attacking philosophy.

However, like Lukaku, I wouldn't trust him to play possession football/holding the ball up.

[yuvala 2,167]

Sorry but Azpi was not figured into Mourinho at the beginning of the season and he fought for his place.

Schurrle was a ghost for a half a season and has found his way back in his team by hard training and such.

KDB could not cut it and ran way. Weak mental characters, nothing more.

Agree about KDB but not sure if Lukaku is really the same.

[Fernando 6,585]

Agree about KDB but not sure if Lukaku is really the same.

Well all I said, if Lukaku is a strong character he will fight for his place like all these other players.

If not, he will follow his country mate to some other team.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

Agree about KDB but not sure if Lukaku is really the same.

Maybe, just maybe, the players that were in the team were just better than KDB?

I don't know what mentality has to do with it. I always saw him as a hard working kid.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

Well all I said, if Lukaku is a strong character he will fight for his place like all these other players.

If not, he will follow his country mate to some other team.

Concerning Lukaku. At the beginning of the season (and after a productive pre-season) he was passed for players who were clearly inferior to him (Torres and Ba). It's more not getting a well deserved shot than not fighting for his place.

[Fernando 6,585]

Maybe, just maybe, the players that were in the team were just better than KDB?

I don't know what mentality has to do with it. I always saw him as a hard working kid.

Azpi ain't world class like Cole, but he's a hard working player, and because of his hard work he won over Mourinho.

KDB far from it.

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

Azpi ain't world class like Cole, but he's a hard working player, and because of his hard work he won over Mourinho.

KDB far from it.

Cole is 33 years old and in decline. None of the midfielders except Lampard were old. Hazard, Oscar and Mata were superior players, Willian was bought for 30 ml, Schurrle is a least equally good and probably better than KDB. So tell me? Whose place should he have taken? The kid was smart leaving.

[yuvala 2,167]

Maybe, just maybe, the players that were in the team were just better than KDB?

I don't know what mentality has to do with it. I always saw him as a hard working kid.

Well he cant just give up after half a season..

It's not like the other players have been amazing and unreplaceable.

For me, its a sign of a not so strong mentality (not work ethic, he might still be a hard worker).

But who knows, maybe Mou told him that he wouldn't let him the starting XI, ever.. We'll never know.