Morata, Lukaku under pressure to deliver in crunch tie
Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku will be under pressure to fire their teams back into the Premier League title race when the misfiring strikers clash in Chelsea’s showdown with Manchester United on Sunday.
Chelsea forward Morata and United front man Lukaku were the toast of their clubs after celebrating their close-season transfers with a barrage of goals.
But, with Chelsea and United battling to keep pace with leaders Manchester City, Morata and Lukaku have lost their midas touch at the wrong moment, putting them under the microscope at Stamford Bridge this weekend.
United manager Jose Mourinho splashed out £75 million ($98 million) to sign Lukaku from Everton after persuading the Belgium international to snub interest from Blues boss Antonio Conte.
Lukaku was off to a fast start, netting 11 times in his first 10 games. However, the 24-year-old finds himself in the midst of a barren spell stretching back six games to the end of September. United fans have grown frustrated by Lukaku’s lack of contributions outside the penalty area, prompting Mourinho to chastise Old Trafford crowd for failing to give the striker enough support in last weekend’s win over Tottenham. Lukaku responded to the doubters by admitting he is still a work in progress.
After missing out on Lukaku, Conte settled for Morata as an expensive consolation prize. Morata hit the ground running with seven goals in his first seven games following his club record £58 million ($75 million) move from Real Madrid. But, like Lukaku, the 25-year-old Spaniard has failed to score in his last six games, earning criticism for some lethargic displays. Morata also had to claim he had been misquoted after an interview in which he appeared to hint he wouldn’t stay with Chelsea for long because he doesn’t enjoy London’s hectic lifestyle.
In the circumstances, Morata and Lukaku could do with silencing the critics by producing a priceless winner at the Bridge. Both players carried hefty price tags because of the belief they were ready to deliver when the stakes are highest.
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