Lukaku must get angry
Don’t be a pussycat. Roar again, Romelu
WHEN Manchester United returned to the field for the second half against Juventus, Romelu Lukaku emerged from the tunnel much later than his team-mates. He looked like he would rather have been anywhere else.
This is a striker who is blessed with brute strength and electrifying pace. He should be roaring like a lion, but on Tuesday he played like a pussy cat — and not for the first time.
Lukaku was bullied all night long by Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, the Juventus centre halves. I cannot remember him winning a single contest in the air.
I do have some sympathy for Lukaku. He was not solely to blame for United’s defeat. Jose Mourinho got his tactics all wrong and his side looked completely ill-prepared to face the Italian champions.
But it is at times like this when as a player you have to roll up your sleeves and be prepared to die for the cause. You say to yourself, ‘I may not believe in the tactics but I’m going to battle, scrap and make life as uncomfortable as possible for my opponent.’
Contrast Lukaku’s movement with that of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Juventus forward started on the left but often found himself in central positions.
With United, everything seems fixed and wooden. Everyone is isolated.
Lukaku looks like a traffic warden when he points at teammates to tell them where to go but he does not offer any movement himself. When United’s full backs were in possession, Lukaku did not come across to the flanks to offer himself.
He did not get into the box enough to threaten and when he did, he was heavy-footed and lacked the anticipation to get on the end of anything.
Once you take away Lukaku’s pace and power, he does not give you much else. So how does Mourinho revitalise a player signed for £75million after he scored 25 Premier League goals in his final season at Everton?
Lukaku needs the nurture and love of his manager. Everton bosses Roberto Martinez and Ronald Koeman would constantly sing his praises and he responded.
Does he feel that same love from Mourinho, the manager who let him go at Chelsea in 2014? Mourinho needs to put an arm around Lukaku, tell him how good he is and help him fulfil his potential.
Lukaku does not seem to enjoy playing as the lone striker. He will not go to press and does not look equipped to make highintensity runs into the channels time and time again.
United need to get runners such as Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial around Lukaku. I want to see him compete and use his height to flick on balls for those two forwards. Most of all, he must work harder. Recently, Lukaku said that he is out to overtake Thierry Henry’s 175 Premier League goals, but I don’t believe he has anywhere near the same desire as my former Arsenal team-mate.
Not only does Lukaku need to score more goals, but he is not doing enough for his team. He has been a passenger for far too long. At the World Cup with Belgium, you could see Eden Hazard demanding more from Lukaku.
Who is brave enough in the Manchester United team to tell him to graft?
United have to get him angry. Once they do that, we will see the snarling, physical, fearsome forward we know Lukaku can be.