Could Everton’s Romelu Lukaku really snub Chelsea?
Could Romelu Lukaku actually snub Chelsea to stay at Everton this summer?
For week, most football pundits (myself included) have been convinced that Everton striker Romelu Lukaku would end up at Chelsea this summer. Now, with the Toffees ready to over their Belgian hitman a bumper new contract, is it actually possible that Lukaku could snub the Blues?
The Mirror are reporting that Ronald Koeman’s club are willing to make the talented striker the highest paid player in club history with a contract beginning at 135 thousand pounds per week. That’s quite a bold statement by the new ownership in place at Goodison Park.
Despite the gravity of the Everton offer, it’s still likely that Chelsea are willing to offer Lukaku at least the same contract terms. In fact, Roman Abramovich’s club could conceivably be willing to offer him even more cash. If Everton get into a bidding war with Chelsea, they’re certainly going to lose.
The Toffees only chance to retain their 22-year-old forward is to convince him that things are really going to be different at the club moving forward. The club’s new ownership have taken a giant step in the right direction with their managerial change, but Ronald Koeman’s arrival by itself isn’t enough to cause Lukaku to snub Chelsea and remain at Everton.
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If Everton really want to successfully combat Chelsea’s overtures, they need to prove that they’re willing to spend big to acquire other supporting talent. The club have been rumored to be interested in the likes of Wolfsburg attacker Julian Draxler, and that’s just the sort of talent they need to chase if they want to hang on to Lukaku.
Chelsea’s clearest path to make sure Lukaku commits to spending the next few years at Stamford Bridge is to make it clear that his second stint with the club will go more smoothly than his first. Lukaku will need assurances from Antonio Conte that he’ll slot immediately into his starting 11. Given Conte’s preference to play two strikers at once, it shouldn’t be that challenging to find a starting spot for such a prodigious goal scorer.
If Romelu Lukaku wants the guarantee of riches and certain opportunities to win silverware then he’ll make the move to Chelsea. If instead, he’s the sort of man who wants to really have an opportunity to trail a new path with his club, then he’ll stay right where he is at Everton. His decision will tell us quite a bit about what sort of player and person the Belgian hitman is.