Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel opens up about Romelu Lukaku struggles against Crystal Palace
In his post-match interview (h/t The Independent), Thomas Tuchel shared his thoughts regarding the woeful stat involving Romelu Lukaku in the Crystal Palace vs Chelsea fixture.
The Blues came out on top after a hard-fought victory against the Eagles courtesy of a composed finish by Hakim Ziyech in the 89th minute. The West Londoners dominated possession but found it tough to find the back of the net on the day.
Just when the Stamford Bridge faithful would have been resigned to a draw, the former Ajax Amsterdam player put the ball in the back of the net. The 28-year-old attacker thought he had opened the scoring in the 75th minute but that goal was ruled offside as Romelu Lukaku was deemed to be in an offside position in the buildup.
The Belgian international barely touched the ball throughout the match with a combined total of only seven touches at Selhurst Park. The former Inter Milan player will have to start getting more involved in the game if he is to justify the fees that were required to bring him back to Stamford Bridge last summer.
In his post-match interview (h/t The Independent), when quizzed about this worrying stat Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel tried to be as vague as possible while asserting the fact that the Belgian had very little involvement in the match:
“I am not so sure if I have a good answer to your question. I don’t know what it says. It says he was obviously not involved and could not make a point. I am not sure if it says so much about us in general,”
Romelu Lukaku and his struggles to adapt at Chelsea?
The 28-year-old Belgian striker has struggled to replicate the same kind of form that he has shown in Serie A with the Nerazzurri. Whilst the performances in the recently concluded FIFA Club World Cup seemed to be a step in the right direction, we haven’t been able to see such outings in the Premier League or the UEFA Champions League.
The former Manchester United striker made the sensational £97.5m switch to the Blues last season and was touted to be their solution upfront. Lukaku is looking far from the races at the moment and a packed schedule in the coming week could be a good opportunity for some redemption.
The Blues have two pivotal matches towards the business end of February against LOSC Lille and Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League and the Carabao Cup respectively. The Belgian could save himself some of the blushes by clocking some great performances in those matches.
The defending Club World Cup champions are also missing their first choice wing-backs in Ben Chilwell and Reece James. The added absence of Mason Mount has only given Thomas Tuchel an even bigger headache when it comes to the attacking department.
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Hakim Ziyech is stepping up to the plate really well with some crucial goals in their last few PL fixtures, but the German manager would be hoping that some of the other big stars like Romelu Lukaku would do the same. The former Everton player has a vast array of experience in the Premier League but a lack of consistency has left the Chelsea faithful asking for more on several occasions.