Fabio Capello explains why Romelu Lukaku made such an impact under Antonio Conte at Inter and has ‘no space’ to play his football with Chelsea, as Thomas Tuchel drops him to the bench against Lille.
The first leg in the Champions League Round of 16 kicks off at Stamford Bridge at 20.00 GMT.
Lukaku and Italy international Jorginho are both left on the bench by Tuchel, who insisted the striker was simply ‘tired’ and therefore rested.
It comes after Lukaku set a new Premier League record of making just seven touches of the ball in the most recent game against Crystal Palace.
Speaking on Sky Sport Italia, where he is a pundit, Capello explained why Lukaku is such a very different player at Inter and Chelsea.
“Lukaku fit perfectly into Conte’s counter-attacking style at Inter, because there were lots of spaces, he had this physical strength and pace that allowed him to flatten the defenders in Serie A.
“However, Chelsea play this very different type of football with lots of short passes and Lukaku doesn’t have the same spaces to move in. He also finds that in England the defenders have a similar physicality to him and hold out more.
“Lukaku had this power and space to run at defenders and turn the game around.”
Chelsea: Mendy; Christensen, Thiago Silva, Rudiger; Azpilicueta, Kanté Kovacic, Alonso; Ziyech, Havertz, Pulisic
Lille: Jardim; Djalo, Botman, Fonte, Celik; Onana, Xeka, Andre; Bamba, David, Renato Sanches
“It’s been the topic of conversation all day.”
“I think it’s the right call. He’s not been playing well enough.”
“It’s a statement to the player.”
The studio discuss Thomas Tuchel’s decision to leave Romelu Lukaku on the bench for tonight’s #UCL clash vs Lille 💬 pic.twitter.com/kDuOSMjJ7e
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 22, 2022