Daily Mail

LUKAKU: I’M A LEAN, MEAN MACHINE AGAIN

- CHRIS WHEELER

He IS starting to emerge from a lean spell in front of goal and romelu Lukaku is looking noticeably, well, leaner.

The Manchester United striker admits that he bulked up to play for Belgium at the World Cup last summer, and his more muscular physique has hindered him amid the faster pace of the Premier League.

After firing four goals in his first four games this season, Lukaku endured a 12-match drought before scoring on his last two starts against Southampto­n and Fulham.

The 25-year- old has shed the weight by keeping away from the gym, drinking more water, and sticking to a diet of fish and vegetables, while a different training regime has helped to resolve a hamstring problem.

having recently dismissed criticism of his physique as ‘bull***t’, Lukaku was able to laugh about it after helping United to their biggest league win in 13 months.

‘A little bit of muscle, yeah,’ he said. ‘I had to lose it.

‘I felt great at the World Cup, but here in the Premier League I cannot play with the same amount of muscle as internatio­nal football.

‘ When I came back, I knew straightaw­ay “nah, I cannot play in this style like this”.

‘So you just stay out of the gym, drink a lot of water, and a lot of veg and fish, and it helps.

‘Also, I had a hamstring injury, which is something that never happens to me.

‘We did a lot of tests to see what the problem was. Just training differentl­y, more prevention in the gym and more speed bursts in training — for me, that’s the most essential.

‘After the World Cup, I was a bit tired. You know, I had the same thing in 2014 after the World Cup. When I came back to everton, I was really in a slump. So, now I think I am at a decent level and ready to go again.’

Lukaku also spoke to manager Jose Mourinho about what was missing in his game after making four of his previous six appearance­s off the bench.

Sportsmail expert Martin Keown was not the only one to notice Lukaku chasing down every ball against Fulham, commenting on

Match of the Day that the imposing Belgian had ‘played like a pussycat for most of the season’.

‘Not enough intensity,’ acknowledg­ed Lukaku. ‘I played with not enough aggression, I think.

‘Me and the manager had good conversati­ons in the last couple of days, where really he told me what he wanted from me.

‘I know from my side I have to do better. Today I think I played with intensity like everybody else.’

After the 2-2 draw with Arsenal in midweek, this was another highly energised performanc­e from United, with Lukaku adding to goals from Ashley Young and Juan Mata.

A weak Fulham side, described by manager Claudio ranieri as ‘11 lambs against 11 wolves’ in the first half, briefly rallied when substitute Aboubakar Kamara won and converted a penalty.

however, any hopes of a comeback were killed off shortly afterwards when Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa was sent off for a second bookable offence.

The result leaves Fulham rooted to the foot of the table while United move up to sixth — albeit still eight points adrift of the topfour — ahead of their final Champions League group tie in Valencia on Wednesday.

Mourinho’s declaratio­n that Paul Pogba will start what is likely to be a rather meaningles­s game alongside fringe players like Sergio romero and Andreas Pereira, hardly felt like a vote of confidence in United’s record signing, who was an unused substitute against Fulham.

ranieri’s side, meanwhile, must raise their game for more winnable fixtures against West ham, Newcastle, Wolves and huddersfie­ld this month.

‘We know we have some very decisive games in December,’ said Andre Schurrle. ‘We need to fight. We need to pick up more points and get more confidence, then you can change the momentum.’

 ?? EMPICS ?? Sharpshoot­er: Romelu Lukaku scores against Fulham
EMPICS Sharpshoot­er: Romelu Lukaku scores against Fulham
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