Lukaku hunts Golden Boot as United gather momentum

LONDON: Romelu Lukaku (pic) will look at Manchester United’s next three English Premier League games as a good opportunity to strengthen his prospects of being this season’s top scorer in the competition.

Wolves visit Old Trafford today, before a trip to West Ham and a home fixture against Newcastle, by which time Lukaku could be the clear leader in the race for the Golden Boot.

Lukaku goes into this weekend with four Premier League goals, one behind Chelsea’s Eden Hazard at the top of the standings but has not had an entirely smooth start.

The Belgium striker has scored in each of United’s past two league matches, with both goals in a 2-0 win at Burnley on Sept 2 and another in last weekend’s 2-1 victory at Watford.

Yet he continues to face accusations that he is a “flat-track bully” because of his disappointing record against the rest of England’s big six teams.

Of the 20 Premier League goals Lukaku has scored for United since arriving from Everton in July 2017, only one has come against the teams who made up last season’s final top six – when Chelsea were defeated at Old Trafford in February.

Perhaps, then, a run of fixtures against opponents lower down the table will offer a chance to bolster his goal total.

He may also be helped by the fact Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Tottenham’s Harry Kane have not, so far, reached the high standards they set last season, while Sergio Aguero, who has three league goals to date, is likely to be rotated with Gabriel Jesus at Manchester City.

“You always compete every year against Aguero and Kane and Salah this year. You always think about (the Golden Boot), being a striker,” Lukaku said.

“But then, while I want to score as much as I can, I want to win championships. That’s why I signed for Manchester United.” — AFP