Romelu Lukaku scored to give Roma a valuable draw away to Feyenoord in the Europa League play-off. ‘I want to help Roma to win, there is no point talking about the future now.’
Both teams rattled the frame of the goal in Rotterdam, with Leandro Paredes and Luka Ivanusec, but headers were decisive when Lukaku cancelled out the Igor Paixao opener.
With the away goals rule no longer applying in Europe, this remains an excellent result considering Feyenoord are famously much stronger on home turf than on their travels.
“We wanted to win, but Feyenoord are a very strong team, especially in possession,” Lukaku told Sky Sport Italia.
“It was a good performance, we had other chances, but it’s a good result in Rotterdam and now we will fight it out with everything in the second leg in Rome.”
There were five changes from the XI that lost 4-2 to Inter at the weekend, including Nicola Zalewski in a more advanced role as part of the trident attack.
“Our strength is that we never give up. Zalewski played a very interesting match today, and those who came off the bench made the difference too, that means all of us want to do what is best for Roma.”
This goal is certainly a confidence-booster for Lukaku, who had seemed largely anonymous against Inter and in recent games.
“Lately it was a little difficult, because I was not scoring, but I kept working and doing what the coach asked. I was fortunate today, because I did not hit that header cleanly, but the movement to get there was good.
“We are growing as a team, the season is still long.”
This was the first European match for Daniele De Rossi as a coach, so how has he changed Roma compared to Jose Mourinho?
“He wants us to play with character when we have the ball, creating spaces and filling the penalty area with many bodies. We still need time to get stronger.”
Lukaku is still owned by Chelsea and it seems unlikely he will return to Stamford Bridge, though it might also be tough for Roma to afford a purchase. How does he see his future?
“Right now I am focused on Roma, there is no point talking about the future now. I want to help Roma to win. This is the life of a football player, there are positive and negative moments.
“I am living a dream really, I play in a league that gave me so much, now I want to do everything I can to help Roma win.”
🚨🇧🇪 Romelu Lukaku on loan deal due to expire in June: “Back to Chelsea or staying at Roma? It makes no sense to discuss that now”.
“I’m focused on helping Roma to win and then we will see at the end of the season”. pic.twitter.com/YlNC6n4rWv
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 15, 2024