Why Chelsea are to blame for Lukaku conundrum

James Shearman

• Updated: 10 Nov 2021 15:19 GMT
• 3 min read

Romelu Lukaku has only three Premier League goals this season, but his importance to the Chelsea team is immense.

The Belgian returned to Stamford Bridge this summer in a £97.5 million move from Inter Milan, where he cemented himself as one of the world's best.

In fact, he registered 47 goals and 13 assists in just two seasons in Serie A, leading his side to their first title in 11 years.

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As such, to have just three league goals to his name, in November, seems massively underwhelming.

A lack of a preseason, fixtures against Manchester City and Liverpool and his recent ankle injury are reasonable excuses to be branded about, but given he signed for a club-record fee, they won't wash for many Blues fans.

Yet, his start to life in west London has not been as poor as it looks, and he remains an integral part of Thomas Tuchel's plans to win the Premier League title.

Why Lukaku is so important to Chelsea?

First of all, three goals is not enough from a team's star striker, 11 games into a season.

However, it is important to note that Lukaku has only played in seven of those, translating to a goals per match ratio of 0.43.

That's approximately twice as high as Kai Havertz, and three times as high as Timo Werner has managed this campaign.

Moreover, from a playmaking point of view, Lukaku has created three big chances, two more than the German pair combined.

So while the 28-year-old is somewhat underachieving, he is by far outperforming his competitors for the 'number nine' position.

Add to that, the Blues have one of the strongest squads in world football, but they are clearly missing a backup striker in the Belgian's mould.

It begs the question as to why Olivier Giroud was let go this summer, alongside academy graduate Tammy Abraham.

Replacing two forwards with one was a risky decision, and Chelsea paid the price in their most recent draw with Burnley.

They created chance after chance but failed to convert, with opportunities falling at the feet of the likes of Ross Barkley.

Now, had Giroud been on the end of those, one would think the scoreline would tell a very different story, and less pressure would be placed on Lukaku's return after the international break.

So, perhaps the Chelsea board are part to blame for the team's over-reliance on one man, as it is not Lukaku's fault that a capable backup is not at Tuchel's disposal.