Thomas Tuchel hints Romelu Lukaku may be rested after poor run of form
Chelsea power on but Lukaku powerless
Although Lukaku netted for Belgium during the most recent international break, his club form for Chelsea has been worrying.
The Belgian made it six games without a goal with a no-show against Brentford, but it has not stopped Chelsea from winning four of those six. Clearly then, the Blues can find the net without their record signing, but to sustain a title charge it does feel as though they will have to find a way to help their no.9 fire in the coming weeks and months.
Romelu Lukaku has gone six games without scoring for Chelsea ❌❌❌❌❌❌ pic.twitter.com/JH2qhMKvCv
— Goal (@goal) October 16, 2021
It remains to be seen if Thomas Tuchel can fine-tune his system in order to get the best out of his newest asset, who netted 30 times for Inter Milan last campaign.
Tuchel suggests he may rest Lukaku
Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s clash with Malmo, the German boss seemed to suggest that it was simply a case of fatigue, describing Lukaku as ‘mentally tired’, and hinting he could do with a rest.
Tuchel claimed:
“In my opinion, I feel Romelu overplayed. I think he played too many competitions over the summer and now he played Nations League. He is a fantastic athlete, a competitive guy and he wants to be out there and win, digging deep”
Tuchel on Lukaku’s six game club goal drought: “In my opinion, I feel Romelu overplayed. I think he played too many competitions over the summer and now he played Nations League. He is a fantastic athlete, a competitive guy and he wants to be out there and win, digging deep” #CFC
— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) October 19, 2021
Lukaku appeared 44 times for Inter Milan last campaign, and has made 9 starts for Chelsea thus far, as well as a further 8 international games since the end of the 2020/21 season. With Malmo and Norwich the next two opponents for the Blues, will Tuchel use this as an opportunity to give him the rest he claims he needs?
Read more:
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Chelsea FC | 8 | 13 | 19 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 8 | 16 | 18 |
| 3 | Manchester City | 8 | 13 | 17 |
| 4 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 8 | 3 | 15 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 | -3 | 15 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 8 | 6 | 14 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 8 | 5 | 14 |
| 8 | Everton FC | 8 | 4 | 14 |
| 9 | Brentford FC | 8 | 3 | 12 |
| 10 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 8 | 0 | 12 |
| 11 | Leicester City | 8 | -1 | 11 |
| 12 | Arsenal FC | 8 | -5 | 11 |
| 13 | Aston Villa | 8 | 0 | 10 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 8 | -3 | 8 |
| 15 | Southampton FC | 8 | -4 | 7 |
| 16 | Watford FC | 8 | -8 | 7 |
| 17 | Leeds United | 8 | -8 | 6 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 8 | -8 | 3 |
| 19 | Newcastle United | 8 | -9 | 3 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 8 | -14 | 2 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 7 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 5 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 4 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 4 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 4 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 4 |
| Sarr, Ismaila | Watford FC | 4 |
| Greenwood, Mason | Manchester United | 4 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 3 |
| Ings, Danny | Aston Villa | 3 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 3 |
| Gray, Demarai | Everton FC | 3 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 3 |
| Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick | Arsenal FC | 3 |
| Lukaku, Romelu | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United | 3 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 3 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 0 | 4 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 4 |
| Veltman, Joel | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 4 |
| Skipp, Oliver | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 4 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 0 | 2 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 3 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 0 | 3 |
| Cooper, Liam | Leeds United | 0 | 3 |
| Duffy, Shane | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 3 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 3 |
| Laporte, Aymeric | Manchester City | 0 | 3 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 3 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 3 |
| Canos, Sergi | Brentford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Struijk, Pascal | Leeds United | 1 | 2 |
| McArthur, James | Crystal Palace | 0 | 3 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 3 |
| Etebo, Oghenekaro | Watford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Djenepo, Moussa | Southampton FC | 0 | 3 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 4 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 4 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 4 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Saint-Maximin, Allan | Newcastle United | 3 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 2 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 2 |
| Ings, Danny | Aston Villa | 2 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 2 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 2 |
| Jimenez, Raul | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 2 |
| Manquillo, Javi | Newcastle United | 2 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 2 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 2 |
| Azpilicueta, Cesar | Chelsea FC | 2 |
| Gross, Pascal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 2 |
| King, Joshua | Watford FC | 2 |