Romelu Lukaku recently revealed his unhappiness after his €115m move from Inter to Chelsea in the summer, but why has he struggled to settle in West London this season?
The 28-year-old Belgian forward was the clear star of Antonio Conte’s Inter, scoring 64 goals and providing 16 assists in 95 appearances across all competitions in his two years in Milan, but he is yet to shine under Thomas Tuchel this season, scoring only five goals in 13 Premier League appearances.
Looking at the stats, it’s clear that Lukaku is not at his best in West London yet; he averaged 0.81 non penalty expected goals and assists (npxG+xA) per 90 minutes last season with the Nerazzurri, and this has dropped to 0.63 npxG+xA per 90 this campaign.
He is taking less shots (2.78 per 90 last season to 2.39 per 90 this season), playing less passes (23.9 attempted per 90 compared to 19.0 per 90), providing less shot-creating chances (3.56 per 90 compared to 2.83 per 90), and taking less touches (36.6 per 90 compared to 30.5 per 90).
One reason for this could be the difference in tactical systems – Conte is known for playing a fluid counter-attacking system using a 3-5-2 formation, which paired him up alongside Argentinian forward Lautaro Martinez, whilst Tuchel most often uses a possession-based system with a 3-4-2-1 formation, leaving the Belgian isolated upfront.
It could also be explained by the differences between Serie A and the Premier League. It’s often believed that the English topflight is a more physical game, meaning that Lukaku is less able to bully defenders, something he often did whilst in Italy.
Conte’s system also gave the Belgian forward more space between the defence and the goal, whilst teams sit significantly deeper against Chelsea. This would also explain why Lukaku has attempted less dribbles this season (2.16 per 90 compared to 1.96 per 90), as he has less space to work with.
It also doesn’t help that Lukaku has struggled more with his physical condition. He only missed four games last campaign for Inter, whilst he has already missed nine games this season, limiting his ability to find a rhythm on the pitch. This could be a result of the packed schedule and limited amount of rest following this summer’s European Championship.
Regardless of the reasons, Lukaku’s recent interview with Sky Sports has done little to help him settle with Chelsea, and now the onus is on him to justify his €115m price tag.
Because he is in England now. not Italy.
Who cares? Not in Serie A any more.
But….he came in and did very well and then had a bit of a dip and got injured for 2 months
how are you judging this as ‘oh yeah Lukaku sucks now’ ????
West Bromelu can keep his soap operatic stylings in blighty,thanks.
Conte > Tuechel.
Only Pep is superior to Conte.
Conte makes players play and not just stroll around the pitch. He made Lukaku feel important at Inter but kept the heat on him to perform. Conte takes the Juve mentality with him wherever he goes. Heck, he even made Inter win the league…despite all their fickle fans not wanting him for being a Juventino. Same happened with Juve in B…Inter snapped up Ibra and Viera and go on a winning streak. So, it’s about mentality and it’s just not there at Chelsea.
blues snakes happy with some fake organisms….still 50% of the season and yet you feel they got scudetto … Juve will conquer
@NOrata, i agree with you except for the last part because Chelsea won Champions League last year.
Give lukuku time still we have 50% of the season
Wait in lukuku and give him time