Chelsea: Thomas Tuchel links Romelu Lukaku’s form to flops like Fernando Torres

Thomas Tuchel believes Romelu Lukaku’s struggles at Chelsea show similarities to previous forward flops at the club, including Fernando Torres and Andriy Shevchenko.

Much has been made about Lukaku managing just seven touches in 90 minutes against Crystal Palace, the worst on record since that data was collected from 2003, and asked to pinpoint the Belgian’s problem, Tuchel was dumbfounded for an answer. 

‘What can I do? I don’t know,’ he said.

‘Well, we have to deal with it. The data is out there and speaks the language that he wasn’t in our game.  

Romelu Lukaku’s (left) Chelsea struggles have been likened to ex-players, like Fernando Torres

Boss Thomas Tuchel accepted that Chelsea have a history of struggles with big-name strikers

‘With strikers, it can be like this when they lack confidence or depending on the game. It’s not the time to laugh about him, he is our player and we will protect him.’

He added: ‘There’s a history of strikers struggling at Chelsea. It is obviously not the easiest place to play. I’m not sure why it is. 

‘Chelsea is seen as a defensive, physical team with a strong competitive attitude and we ask a lot of our strikers in defending.’ 

While Tuchel went on to stress that he believes Lukaku is ‘part of the solution’ to Chelsea finding their best form ahead of a defining week which includes the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Lille, a Carabao Cup final with Liverpool and an FA Cup fifth round trip to Luton Town, he did not put blame for the striker’s form on Chelsea’s system. 

Chelsea  shelled out a club record £97.5million fee to bring the 28-year-old back to Stamford Bridge in the summer after he scored 64 goals in 95 games in all competitions in two seasons for Inter Milan. 

Huge fees have been sent on strikers in the Roman Abramovich era. 

Hernan Crespo was the first headline striker brought in with the Russian’s money, for £16.8m, before a then British record fee of £30m was paid out for Shevchenko and Torres cost the Blues £50m in the winter window of 2011.

Alvaro Morata cost even more, a then club record £60m, but he is now struggling to find any sort of form with Juventus and the £47.5m acquisition of Timo Werner has failed to pay off thus far.

So Lukaku’s attacking struggles at Stamford Bridge are nothing those before him haven’t faced. 

 

 

He has looked frustrated on more than one occasion and in a bombshell interview released by Sky Italia in December he appeared to question Tuchel’s tactics.

‘I think I’m in a moment where the boss could play me a little more but I have to respect his decisions, continue to work and wait for my time to come,’ he said at the time.

‘We’re trying to find a middle ground where we can meet, a system which can help the team perform at its best because right now we’re in a complicated situation.’