Lukaku blames Tuchel for poor start to Chelsea career
Carlo Garganese
- Updated: 29 Dec 2021 17:21 GMT
- 3 min read
Romelu Lukaku has blamed Thomas Tuchel for his underwhelming start to the season, saying the Chelsea manager needed to give him “more clarity” on what his role is with the team.
Lukaku was Chelsea’s big summer signing ahead of the 2021-22 campaign as the Blues splashed out a club record €115 million (£97m) to bring him back to Stamford Bridge from Inter.
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The 28-year-old was expected to be the final piece of the jigsaw for a Tuchel team that won the Champions League last season without a natural striker.
Romelu Lukaku at Chelsea: Goals, assists, results & fixtures in 2021-22
However, after a good first few weeks, Lukaku has struggled to justify the huge outlay on him.
He has scored six goals and produced no assists in 17 games – and went over 100 days without scoring in the Premier League until he found the bet versus Aston Villa on Boxing Day.
Lukaku also spent some time out with an ankle injury in November and he has not regained his first-team place since returning to fitness.
Tuchel has been criticised by some – including by Lukaku’s former coach Antonio Conte - for misusing the Belgian this season.
And the striker himself has now revealed that he spoke to Tuchel in a bid to get more clarity from his coach on what his role is on the pitch.
What did Lukaku say about Tuchel?
“Me and the coach, we had a couple of conversations about whatever he wanted from me,” Lukaku told ESPN Brasil.
“Obviously I told him I’m multidimensional. It’s just about having a bit of clarity about how he wants to use me. And then whatever he wants from me, I can do whatever aspects he wants for the game.
“I can run in behind, I can press, I can hold the ball up. So I think throughout the years these are qualities I added to my game.
“So I just wanted an opportunity, I got it [against Aston Villa], I’m happy that I helped the team, now I just want to move forward.”
Lukaku is next in action on Wednesday when Chelsea host Brighton in the Premier League in their last game of the year.
