Romelu Lukaku image 9

Romelu Lukaku Belgium flag

2018-19 Performances


View full 2018-19 profile

4.8 Season Average Rating
Appearances
45
Goals
15
Assists
3
Yellow cards
5
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Can you ever see Lukaku scoring a goal like the one at 0:46?



To think Ruud seemed like a bit of a big lummox sometimes (at the time). The quality is worlds apart.
It's like our current strikers haven't worked out they should kick it away from the keeper.
 
I do not agree at all with the Hernandez comparison. Hernandez has one of the best movements off the ball. Lukaku is stuck there always on the back foot Two very different kind of players. Hernandez has better ball control and is always on the move. It is very difficult to mark him in the box. It is very easy to mark Lukaku as he never anticipates anything.
Even now if we played Hernandez up front instead of Lukaku he will score goals a lot more than Lukaku because his movements will create trouble for the defence.

I was talking about Lukaku as he was towards the end of his time at Everton. At per his level then the bolded bits are 100% not the case. What you're describing is him as he has been here, when he's being used in the wrong way.

Lukaku in that last Everton season was a better striker than Hernandez is/was, as reflected in his rate of return in the PL that year (25 goals in 37 games) being significantly better than Hernandez' best ever rate of return in the PL for us (13 goals in 27 games), despite Hernandez having played in a much better side.

Hell, even Lukaku's league returns for us last year (0.47 goals per appearance) holds up against Hernandez' best ever year for us in the league (0.48 goals per appearance).

Lukaku scored 43 league goals in his final two seasons at Everton alone (74 appearances), as opposed to the 49 league goals Hernandez scored across the all eight seasons he has featured in the PL (143 appearances). Given Lukaku was still just 23 at that point, it's pretty clear he had a hell of a lot more potential than Chicharito.

The idea that Chicharito would outscore him here simply doesn't hold up. Nor is it feasible that Lukaku could score that many goals for a relatively poor side whilst being (as you seem to think) unable to move, unable to control the ball, being easy to mark and being unable to anticipate anything.
 
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I was talking about Lukaku as he was towards the end of his time at Everton. At per his level then the bolded bits are 100% not the case. What you're describing is him as he has been here, when he's being used in the wrong way.

Lukaku in that last Everton season was a better striker than Hernandez is/was, as reflected in his rate of return in the PL that year (25 goals in 37 games) being significantly better than Hernandez' best ever rate of return in the PL for us (13 goals in 27 games), despite Hernandez having played in a much better side.

Hell, even Lukaku's league returns for us last year (0.47 goals per appearance) holds up against Hernandez' best ever year for us in the league (0.48 goals per appearance).

Lukaku scored 43 league goals in his final two seasons at Everton alone (74 appearances), as opposed to the 49 league goals Hernandez scored across the all eight seasons he has featured in the PL (143 appearances). Given Lukaku was still just 23 at that point, it's pretty clear he had a hell of a lot more potential than Chicharito.

The idea that Chicharito would outscore him here simply doesn't hold up. Nor is it feasible that Lukaku could score that many goals for a relatively poor side whilst being (as you seem to think) unable to move, unable to control the ball, being easy to mark and being unable to anticipate anything.

Everything Everton scored went thru Lukaku. Hernandez is not the player leading the line at United. Many a times, he comes on as a sub and United had a lot of options other than Hernandez to score.
Now everything at United goes to Lukaku. In that aspect Hernandez is the better player in that he will score a lot more goals in the circumstances Lukaku is having at United. The main reason why Lukaku is not scoring is not because the midfield or other players does not create. It is because he is always on the back foot and static and not moving. Hernandez is always on the move and if the ball is put in the right place Hernandez was always there. Lukaku is this case is always on the back foot and three seconds late to move. So it always looks like it is out of reach for him but in reality the ball was put in the right place but Lukaku is always slow to move.
 
I came across a few games from the past couple seasons and decided to take a quick look through them to see how much different Lukaku looks, moves and plays football. I couldn't remember the last time this guy looked like a football player.

Jesus christ he's a different human! Wtf is wrong him? I mean he literally does look 20-30lbs heavy. What's also shocking that this season he spends 90% of his time hiding, pretending to be playing on the defender's shoulder when really he is just hiding from the game. He rarely was doing it in the past couple of seasons. He was very much dropping into all kinds of space. He was actually trying to play football.

Every time he is on the pitch for us this season we have been playing with 10 men. It's simple as that. I'm not sure what is worse, his pathetic condition or the people responsible for choosing to have him play football week in week out for the past 3 months.
 
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Looking at a random compilation video from one of his Everton seasons. Aside from indeed looking leaner the main thing that stands out to me is how much more confident and decisive he looks. When he he's running at defenders or at goal he looks like he thinks he's going to score, as opposed to this season where he constantly looks like he knows he's about to be dispossessed every time he gets the ball.
Actually looks potentially world class in some of these clips. The difference is day and night between that-Lukaku and present-Lukaku.

There’s no way he lost all of that ability. Look at some of those technical one touch scoop pass assists :drool: he wouldn’t even know what to do to make an assist these days.
 
Lukaku scoring 20-30 goals a season does nothing to improve the team. He becomes the one and only attacking angle of the whole team & our results end up relying on him & him only.

Same thing happened at Everton & now the same thing at United. The guy has the goals but the team shifts towards getting the best out of an individual rather than spreading their ability across the pitch from different angles & areas of the pitch.

Would have been a great player in the 90's but a team defensively organised has to merely concentrate on a few of our players to stop our attack.

It's why to me that gir0ud or hazard as a false 9 is better than morata upfront. Or why firminh0 is vital to Liverpool'attack or why ibrahimovic struggled playing for the most team working 11 ever seen at Barcelona.

That is something we ended up realizing even with Ruud Van Nistelrooy, who was about 5 levels higher as a player compared to Lukaku. Also why I rate Andy Cole so highly, came to Utd as a goalscorer, turned into a fantastic all round striker, who helped everyone else around him to hit/keep a higher level.

See the same process with Hernandez, initial infatuation with his scoring to the understanding that he was too limited for what the team needed.
 
That is something we ended up realizing even with Ruud Van Nistelrooy, who was about 5 levels higher as a player compared to Lukaku. Also why I rate Andy Cole so highly, came to Utd as a goalscorer, turned into a fantastic all round striker, who helped everyone else around him to hit/keep a higher level.

See the same process with Hernandez, initial infatuation with his scoring to the understanding that he was too limited for what the team needed.

Agree. We had to give up on RVN to ultimately get better use of not just Ronaldo but Rooney & Tevez too.

The club as a whole moved away from that type of striker & only amplified it with berbatov & hernandez's performances.
 
Dont forget Saha.

And Giggs, instead of staying on the wing trying to provide service to a traditional striker he was able to move around in a far more fluid attack. Saha was a real talent, pity about his body, far more talented footballer than Lukaku, would never score the same amount of goals but give me a striker like Saha with his 15-20 goals every time over the more one dimensional option.
 
Concerning Gigg,I've been watching highlights of our 05/06 season (The season we won the Carling cup and started to show some form) and you can see how his game was evolving.Starting to make inroads centrally and becoming a bigger influence in the cohesion of our attack.Some of his passing was fabulous,a underrated aspect of Giggs's game must be said.
Giggs,Saha,Rooney and Ronaldo were showing quality form and quality crisp short passing football. Unfortunately the moment RVN was back into the side our style became restricted,no fault of RVN as it was just the type of forward he was in his last season at United.Once RVN had a break-down in relationship with Fergie and subsequently moved onto pastors new in Madrid United and Fergie started a new dynasty and we never looked back in that period.
SAF ,and its been said countless,countless times,that his eye and direction in evolving the team was second to none.
 
I wonder if we will see the Lukaku turn today. He has so many variations of it.
 
Wonder if Mourinho will actually sub him off when he inevitably struggles to do anything remotely positive. Guy should never be starting for a club like United in a big game.
 


Looking at a random compilation video from one of his Everton seasons. Aside from indeed looking leaner the main thing that stands out to me is how much more confident and decisive he looks. When he he's running at defenders or at goal he looks like he thinks he's going to score, as opposed to this season where he constantly looks like he knows he's about to be dispossessed every time he gets the ball.

The thing is though, nobody while he was at Everton was saying that he was this world class striker that should be at one of the very top clubs. Maybe traditional Spurs level, but not traditional United level. Better than what hes shown here, but still not good enough. Never will be
 
Everytime Lukaku starts i die a little.

He needs to score the winner or i might be in a coma by the end of the game
 
I have zero expectation for him doing anything remotely productive today. I hope I’ve jinxed it but this is exactly the type of game he’ll be useless in.
 
Pogba gets a lot of criticism but time for Rom to do something in a big/tough game. Not expecting much though.
 
No doubt Liverpool will dominate possession but when we have an opportunity to counter he has to make it stick today so should be a laugh if nothing else
 
Liverpool 3:1 Man Utd
This guy hasn't scored against a club in the top 6 since February, he needs to fix up quickly.
 
Stealing a living as a footballer. Offers feck all & wouldn’t make it into any other top side in Europe.
 
Worst ever striker to wear the United shirt, worse than even fecking Falcao.
 
That little spin 'move' where he lost the ball that led to their second... typical rom really, not much else to say
 
Hope he leaves when Mourinho leaves too. Probably one of my most disliked players around at this point.
 
That little spin 'move' where he lost the ball that led to their second... typical rom really, not much else to say
Think it was their 3rd actually. But yea he tried a dummy and the closest player was the guy that passed him the ball. Started a counter attack
 
I've defended the abuse aimed at Lukaku in the past but his 'performance' today was disgraceful. If I can even call it that. I mean he spent the entire game being unable to hold the ball/ missing the ball/ being out muscled/taking a heavy touch/ reacting late. It was absolutely appalling to watch a United number 9 look so completely lost on the pitch. It felt like we had chucked in some 17 year old who was out of his depth.

I felt he was a useful player but I'm beginning to change my mind. He'd not a Manchester United striker. He could be a decent back up but I'm not sure he'll ever be that.
 
One of the worst players to play for us. Thought he may come good but he’s utter wank. There’s no evidence or signs in his play he will get better...he’s finished. I dread to think how many more points we’d have if he didn’t exist. Can’t stand the sight of his face, his pointing and his utter feckwittery on the ball...a total bumbling shitstain leading the line for United.
 
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