Lukaku blast: ‘Just stay out of my private life’
ROMELU Lukaku has asked the media to ‘stay out of my business’ after he was linked with a summer transfer to United.
Lukaku has been heavily tipped to return to Chelsea in the summer but recent stories have claimed the Premier League’s top scorer could ‘turn his back’ on a move amid interest from United.
The report claims Lukaku is ‘torn’ about which club to join and concerned about the demands imposed by Chelsea coach Antonio Conte, who seems set to sell Diego Costa in the summer.
However, Lukaku tweeted his displeasure at the report.
He wrote on Twitter: “Some media these days are annoying man.”
Lukaku then followed it up with another tweet.
“As long as I didn’t make a public statement about my situation please stay out of my business, ok?”
United considered a move for Lukaku in 2015 and are believed to retain an interest in the 24-year-old ahead of what is likely to be another busy summer transfer window.
But it is understood Torino’s Andrea Belotti is the preferred option to replace the injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic as United’s figurehead next season.
Jose Mourinho loaned Lukaku to Everton shortly after he returned to Chelsea in 2013 and sold him the next year for £28m.
Lukaku, who is contracted at Goodison Park until 2019, said last year he would be open to working with Mourinho again.
He is represented by Mino Raiola, whose clients include Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba A WEEK after Matteo Darmian got the call ahead of him against Swansea, there was Axel Tuanzebe, out of position at right-back in the north London sunshine, eyeing a world-class talent in Alexis Sanchez – and dominating him.
Gary Neville was eagerly asking about the United rookies Jose Mourinho had taken to London in the press lounge hours before kickoff. Neville was once chased around the Highfield Road dressing room as a 20-year-old by Roy Keane and that experience made him a demanding taskmaster when he had to knock youngsters into shape.
He was effusive about Tuanzebe. “You think that Tuanzebe was up against Alexis Sanchez, who is a world-class player, at a difficult stadium to play at,” Neville said.
“He was fantastic from the first to the 90th minute. He can be proud. He was United’s big plus today.”
Mourinho was more succinct: “I think that Alexis knows his name now.”
As acid tests go, Sanchez was a potentially corrosive one for Tuanzebe and while the Chilean has recently inherited Mesut Ozil’s knack of fading, it should not diminish the Rochdale-raised teenager’s handling of him.
Mourinho was relaxed in defeat and his eyes lit up when he was asked about Tuanzebe at his postmatch press conference. The United manager was eager to savour easing youngsters into the team after Scott McTominay became his third academy debut as the question surrounding his mistrust of juniors was answered.
It was apparent that accusation had got under Mourinho’s skin when he whipped out a list of all the youth players he had promoted during his managerial career at his press conference unveiling.
Tuanzebe might be wet behind the ears still, but his performance at Arsenal confirmed what United’s academy followers had pontificated about before he was named on the bench at Crystal Palace last season.
He is such a perceptive player, he rarely has to slide into a tackle and Tuanzebe’s imposing physique belies his grace on the ball.
At Arsenal, he was the best passer in a defence.
RedIssue’s last cover referred to Smalling as a ‘clogger’ and he regressed to that status at Arsenal.
Jones was urged to play a forward pass by team-mates and refused.
United cannot justify keeping both Smalling and Jones next season. The Reds have to overcompensate for their delicate bodies.
Marcos Rojo’s injury and Mourinho’s insistence on Tuanzebe remaining at right-back in the firstteam could reprieve them.
Yet before Rojo ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament, United had explored signing Benfica’s Victor Lindelof and Atletico Madrid’s Jose Gimenez. Now they are courting Paris Saint-Germain centre-half Marquinhos. Mourinho could also use his relationship with Raphael Varane or his association with Athletic Bilbao’s coveted Aymeric Laporte – represented by Jorge Mendes – to his advantage. Whoever United recruit for their defence, Tuanzebe’s development has to be considered for the future. United have scouted a right-back heir to Antonio Valencia but that could be deferred by a year if Mourinho perseveres with Tuanzebe, who he still intends to develop into a central defender for the firstteam. A year of bedding into senior football as Valencia’s understudy while United find an established specialist for Eric Bailly could cement Tuanzebe’s squad status before he starts to challenge the central defenders. He will only be 20 then, too. He should get the call more often now. Gary Neville