Why Manchester United need to keep hold of Romelu Lukaku
A few eyebrows were raised when Manchester United signed Romelu Lukaku for around £75million from Everton in 2017.
Romelu Lukaku, 25, enjoyed his time at Goodison Park after struggling at Chelsea, scoring 87 goals in just over 160 appearances, with 25 alone in his final season. However, two years on and it looks like he could be on his way out according to the Daily Star. The 25-year-old has struggled for form this season, scoring just eight goals with a large majority of them coming during Jose Mourinho’s time at the club.
Since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer replaced Mourinho, however, the caretaker Manchester United manager has opted preferred Marcus Rashford ahead of Romelu Lukaku to lead the attack. This has confined the Belgian to the bench, making just one start in the league under Solskjaer. This combined with the fact the 25-year-old hasn’t found the net in the last four games and Rashford’s six goals in his last eight games could mean the end for Romelu Lukaku at Old Trafford.
That just cannot happen, especially with Romelu Lukaku stuck in the middle of his best years as a striker. The 25-year-old’s best years are ahead of him and all he needs is a manager who can put faith in him and play to his strengths. At the moment, Solskjaer is using a counter-attacking formula and utilising Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford’s speed and agility to hit opponents hard.
Lukaku, on the other hand, flourishes in a more possession-based style of play, allowing the Belgian to use his big and burly stature to bully defenders. While he was never an archetypal Manchester United striker, he has done well most of his time at Old Trafford and only started to struggle this season, which coincided with Jose Mourinho’s usual three season decline.
While Lukaku has been linked with a move away before to both Italy and even Real Madrid, the Red Devils should do everything to try and keep him. Whether they want to accept it or not, the Belgian forward is part of their core squad alongside Paul Pogba, Anthony Martial, David De Gea and Marcus Rashford.
If given time, the Belgian will surely regain his form and if his past is anything to go by, he will do it in some style. Every time Romelu Lukaku has gone on a goal drought, he has ended it quite spectacularly at both Everton and United. Hence, United should do everything possible to keep hold of Lukaku in summer.
