5 players Chelsea could have signed instead of Romelu Lukaku
Romelu Lukaku re-signed for Chelsea in August 2021 for a reported £97.5 million.
Lukaku became the club's record signing and came with huge expectations after a brilliant season in Serie A. In the five months since, it's fair to say that the transfer's rewards have been underwhelming.
Romelu Lukaku
24 Games
8 Golas
2 Assists
Tammy Abraham
30 Games
17 Goals
4 Assists
Chelsea sold Tammy Abraham and replaced him with Romelu Lukaku, but it's the Roma man who's outscoring his counterpart this season.
Maybe Chelsea sold too soon? 🤔 https://t.co/h86K4CN1VU
Lukaku is yet to find his form in the Premier League under Thomas Tuchel. He enjoyed a great start, scoring almost immediately after featuring. Since then, his time has been plagued with injuries and bad runs of form.
Lukaku has featured in 16 league games so far for Chelsea and has only five Premier League goals to his name. Considering he came for such a mammoth fee, there is a sense of expectation around Stamford Bridge that the Belgian should be doing more. He has further alienated fans with a contentious interview in which he suggested he is not happy at the club and looked forward to moving back to Inter Milan at some point.
#CFC
Thomas Tuchel on Romelu Lukaku: “We do everything to help him. This is absolutely the wrong question. It is not about one player. It is a team sport, it is not about 10 players serving 1 player. This is not Chelsea. This is not football”. 🔵 #CFC https://t.co/5jim50wGWT
Let's take a look at five players Chelsea could have signed instead of Romelu Lukaku.
#5. Jonathan David - Lille
Jonathan David is one of the most sought-after strikers in Europe right now.
The Canadian plays for Lille in Ligue 1 and enjoyed a fantastic breakout season last year. Having initially started out with Gent in Belgium, David signed for Lille in August 2020.
David cost Lille a reported €30 million and became the most expensive Canadian footballer of all time. His move has reaped multiple rewards, as David has flourished ever since he moved to France.
Jonathan David has scored 15 goals across all competitions for Lille so far in 2021/22:
◉ 8 right-foot
◉ 6 left-foot
◉ 1 header
No weak-foot detected. 🔍 https://t.co/DAseYrCKmj
David scored 13 league goals last season and has already almost bettered his record this season. The 22-year-old has 12 league goals so far this season from 22 games.
Several clubs have the youngster on their watchlist, with a big move seemingly imminent.
#4. Julian Alvarez - River Plate
Julian Alvarez has become the next big South American sensation in world football.
Alvarez plies his trade with River Plate in Argentina and has shown some serious promise over the last couple of years. Still only 21, the youngster is one of the most promising talents in the world.
Julian Alvarez played a direct hand in 24 goals in 21 league appearances for River Plate last season (18
,6
)
The 21-year-old was comfortably the top rated player in the Argentine Primera Division (7.83)
🔥 Julian Alvarez played a direct hand in 24 goals in 21 league appearances for River Plate last season (18⚽,6🅰️)
🇦🇷 The 21-year-old was comfortably the top rated player in the Argentine Primera Division (7.83) https://t.co/vVOq8oxj2A
Alvarez made headlines last year as he scored a mammoth 18 goals and provided six assists during just 21 league appearances. The Argentinian has been on the radar of several top clubs, with a move to Chelsea rivals Manchester City almost set in stone.
BREAKING: Man City 'agree £15.5m deal for Julian Alvarez' to beat Man United to River Plate starlet | @AlexCTurk
bit.ly/3tWmcAD
If the move does go through, there is no doubt the Premier League will have gained a brilliant striker.