Romelu Lukaku was supposed to be the marquee player for Chelsea this season but the Belgian forward has been a massive failure so far.
In 19 Premier League games, the forward has scored only five goals and this is in stark contrast with the stats he had for Inter during the previous season. Last season, he had scored 24 goals and provided 11 assists in 36 Serie A games for Inter.
During the first half of the season, Tuchel chose to stick with Romelu Lukaku as his main centre-forward despite his shortcomings. In the second half of the season though, the 28-year-old has fallen down the pecking order and right now Kai Havertz has taken his spot in the side.
🚨 Chelsea still owe Inter Milan over £71m for Romelu Lukaku.
(Source: Sun on Sunday) pic.twitter.com/2UgrTFlPns
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) March 13, 2022
Havertz has repaid his manager’s faith with some really important goals and it looks like Lukaku’s future at Chelsea is under major stress.
Kai Havertz scored Chelsea’s only goal in the 1-0 win vs Newcastle United and he’s in line to start against Lille in midweek as well.
The Lille game comes just three days after the Newcastle United win so one would imagine that Romelu Lukaku will come back into the side but we think Thomas Tuchel will stick with Havertz. The Blues have a 2-0 lead from the 1st leg so he will need a quick goal to settle the nerves on Wednesday.
Romelu Lukaku has scored only three goals in 2022 and these three goals came against Luton Town, Palmeiras and Al Hilal.
Clearly, the Belgian international comes up with his best performances against the minnows but against the stronger sides, he goes completely missing. Lille have picked up seven points from a possible nine since that 1st leg loss to Chelsea so clearly, they have the capability to cause damage.
The 28-year-old has turned out to be a major flop for the Blues and there’s very little chance that Thomas Tuchel will hand him a start during such a key Champions League tie.
Romelu Lukaku will come off the bench on Wednesday playing alongside Kai Havertz – if the London side need to chase the game.
Read: Chelsea’s team news vs Lille for the 2nd leg.
Data courtesy Fotmob.
