While Romelu Lukaku‘s recent loan move to Roma may have raised eyebrows, what’s even more perplexing is the lack of interest in the Belgian striker this summer. Why hasn’t he been in higher demand?
Read More: Roma sign Romelu Lukaku on loan for 23/24 season after Inter and Juventus drama
The Lukaku Enigma: Why Did Top Clubs Overlook a Proven Striker?
Cast your mind back to the 2013 UEFA Super Cup, a high-stakes shootout between Bayern Munich and Chelsea. The tension was palpable as nine perfect penalties were converted, with Bayern leading 5-4. Then, Romelu Lukaku stepped up, only for his tame effort to be thwarted by Manuel Neuer, handing the trophy to the German giants.
Lukaku had returned from a loan spell at West Brom with hopes of securing a spot in José Mourinho’s plans. However, just four days after that ill-fated penalty, he found himself loaned out to Everton.
In most sports stories, this is the point where you’d hear, “And he never looked back.” But Lukaku’s career has been more about looking back than moving forward, with numerous reunions and transfers, although he’s consistently delivered goals wherever he’s played.
Fast forward a decade from his initial separation from Mourinho, and Lukaku finds himself under the Portuguese manager’s guidance again, this time at Roma. However, despite the demand for quality strikers in the transfer market this summer, it’s puzzling that there wasn’t more competition for a player of Lukaku’s impressive track record.
Consider the big moves: Bayern secured Harry Kane, Real Madrid lost Karim Benzema and settled for Joselu, Manchester United invested in Rasmus Højlund, and Paris Saint-Germain brought in Gonçalo Ramos. The classic number nine striker seems to be making a comeback in football, thanks to stars like Kane, Benzema, Robert Lewandowski, and Erling Haaland, and top clubs are all in pursuit of one.
So, it remains a mystery why there was such limited interest in Lukaku, who was available throughout the summer. The situation is so peculiar that even his parent club, Chelsea, reportedly scoured the market for a striker despite having him in their ranks all along.
Romelu Lukaku’s Lost Opportunity with Pochettino and Chelsea’s Scoring Dilemma
Could it be that Mauricio Pochettino simply couldn’t envision Romelu Lukaku fitting into his tactical puzzle? One might ponder this as an intriguing possibility, but what’s even more baffling is Chelsea’s apparent reluctance to seize any available help in the goal-scoring department.
Consider the previous season’s Premier League stats: Only four teams managed to score fewer goals than Chelsea’s meager 38. What’s truly perplexing is that they underperformed their expected goals (xG) more than anyone else in the league. Chelsea’s xG stood at 49.9, highlighting that they fell short by nearly 12 goals compared to what they should have achieved. To put it into perspective, they scored a staggering 20 goals less than Brentford, despite taking a whopping 76 more shots.
Let’s rewind the clock to a time when Chelsea had a penchant for snatching up young talents with big potential. In those days, they made a notable investment in a budding star, a young Romelu Lukaku from Anderlecht. However, despite an impressive loan spell at West Brom during the 2012-13 season and even a Super Cup appearance, Lukaku found himself loaned out and eventually sold to Everton.
During his stint on the blue side of Merseyside, Lukaku was a prolific goal-scorer, netting an impressive 87 goals in 166 games. His exploits convinced José Mourinho to bring him back into the fold, marking their first reunion as manager and player when Lukaku joined Manchester United in 2017.
His initial season at Old Trafford was promising, with Lukaku bagging 27 goals in all competitions. United secured a second-place finish in the Premier League and reached the FA Cup final. However, his second season in Manchester is largely remembered as a disappointment, leading to a sense of indifference when he was eventually sold to Inter the following year. Nevertheless, Lukaku managed to find the net 15 times despite being in and out of the starting lineup.
There was a glimmer of hope that Lukaku might regain his scoring touch under then-interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when he notched six goals in three games in late February and early March of 2019, including a crucial brace in the memorable 3-1 UEFA Champions League last-16 second-leg triumph against PSG.
Yet, those moments would mark the conclusion of his time at Manchester United before embarking on a new journey in Serie A. His tenure at Inter Milan was nothing short of spectacular, tallying an impressive 54 goals in 87 appearances across all competitions, with 47 goals coming in just 72 Serie A outings. This remarkable stint ultimately paved the way for a high-profile return to Chelsea, further cementing his status as a top-tier striker.
Lukaku’s Stamford Bridge Return: A Rollercoaster Ride of Goals and Expectations
Romelu Lukaku’s return to Stamford Bridge began with a bang, notching four goals in his first four games. However, that initial spark gradually faded. In the 2021-22 season, he managed 15 goals in 44 matches across all competitions, with just eight coming in the Premier League. Despite Chelsea’s significant investment of around £100 million, Lukaku found himself loaned back to Inter Milan a mere year later.
His second stint at Inter didn’t quite replicate the remarkable success of his initial tenure, but it was far from disappointing. Scoring 14 goals in 37 appearances, with only 20 of those as starts, Lukaku remained a valuable contributor. While his goal tally may not have been as eye-catching in recent years, it’s worth noting that he has commanded approximately £280 million in transfer fees throughout his career, and he’s still only 30 years old.
Lukaku’s journey with Inter under Simone Inzaghi saw him play a role in the team’s journey to the Champions League final. However, that final encounter highlighted the debate around his elite striker status despite his impressive goal-scoring history.
In the closing moments of the match, with Rodri scoring what would prove to be the winning goal for Manchester City in Istanbul, Federico Dimarco came agonizingly close to equalizing, hitting the crossbar with a looping header before it rebounded off Lukaku. While this wasn’t his fault, it did raise questions. Furthermore, Lukaku had a golden opportunity to level the score in the 88th minute.
A cross from Robin Gosens found its way to the heart of the six-yard box, and Lukaku, from point-blank range, directed a header that struck Ederson’s leg and eventually deflected behind for a corner after bouncing off Rúben Dias. This missed chance had an expected goal (xG) value of 0.48, emphasizing the fine margins that can define a striker’s reputation in the world of football.
Lukaku’s Struggles on the Grand Stage: A Reputation Further Cemented for a Striker
The whispers about Romelu Lukaku’s perceived lack of clinical finishing on the grandest stages of football had already gained volume, and they reached a crescendo during Belgium’s disappointing exit from the group stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In a pivotal match against Croatia, where his country desperately needed a victory, Lukaku entered the fray at halftime and immediately found himself at the center of attention.
He unleashed a total of five shots, and remarkably, four of them were categorized as significant scoring opportunities. However, the outcome was far from ideal – he failed to find the net, including one particularly glaring miss that left fans and pundits astounded. This particular chance, which you can see below, was assigned an expected goal (xG) value of 0.62, adding another layer to the scrutiny of his performance.
In one of those unforgettable World Cup moments, Kevin De Bruyne’s precision cross from the left was intended to set up a straightforward chance for Romelu Lukaku. However, an accidental flick by Dejan Lovren diverted the ball away from Croatia’s goalkeeper, Dominik Livakovic, and left Lukaku with an open goal to head into. Unfortunately, what should have been a straightforward finish turned into a missed opportunity, as Lukaku’s header sailed over the bar.
To be fair, it was a split-second situation that left little room for reaction, but it was compounded by additional big chances he couldn’t capitalize on. As a result, Lukaku finished the game with an individual expected goal (xG) of 1.73 and no goals to show for it, ultimately contributing to his country’s premature exit from the World Cup in Qatar.
Such high-profile moments have arguably cast a shadow over Lukaku’s reputation in the eyes of football fans. However, one would hope that those deeply entrenched in the game can see beyond these isolated incidents. After all, a player who netted an impressive 47 goals in Serie A across the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons combined should not be reduced to a few missed chances in crucial matches.
In fact, Lukaku boasts several remarkable scoring achievements. He’s notched an impressive 75 goals in 108 games for Belgium in all competitions and remains on track to potentially become only the fourth player ever to reach the elusive 100 international goals mark, joining the ranks of Ali Daei, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi.
Turning to his club performances, Lukaku has consistently reached double figures in goals in nine of the last 10 seasons across all competitions. In Europe’s top five leagues during that period, only Robert Lewandowski has achieved this feat more frequently. Lukaku also stands as one of just three players to have scored at least 14 goals in each of the last 11 seasons in all competitions within Europe’s major leagues, alongside Lewandowski and Wissam Ben Yedder.
Furthermore, Lukaku ranks fourth in an impressive list of players with the best minutes-per-goal ratios in Serie A since the 1994-95 season (minimum 10 goals). His striking rate of a goal every 132 minutes in Italy’s top flight is surpassed only by Christian Vieri (108), the Brazilian Ronaldo (110), and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (127).
It’s no surprise, then, that the majority of interest in Lukaku this summer came from Italy. He initially and surprisingly declined an opportunity to return to Inter Milan, seemingly in pursuit of a move to Juventus. However, Juventus fans expressed their discontent with the potential signing of the Belgian by staging protests on the pitch at the Allianz Stadium during a pre-season friendly.
After reportedly turning down lucrative offers from the Saudi Pro League, Lukaku found a lifeline in the form of a reunion with a familiar face—José Mourinho, once again, this time at Roma, on a season-long loan deal.
Lukaku has showcased his prowess under Mourinho’s guidance before, amassing 43 goal involvements in 76 games during his time at Chelsea and Manchester United under the Portuguese manager (33 goals and 10 assists). His dynamic partnership with Lautaro Martínez at Inter Milan was noteworthy, and if Mourinho can replicate that chemistry with Paulo Dybala at Roma, it could leave many clubs wondering if they’ve overlooked a significant talent.
