Romelu Lukaku has been at the centre of criticism ever since joining Chelsea as an 18-year-old. But he deserves all the credit for becoming one of the best strikers in world soccer.
In this Belgian golden generation, two strikers staked their claim on leading their nation at the top of the attack – Romelu Lukaku and Christian Benteke. Both showed their talents, but, for a while now, it is clear who out of the two is the better player.
Lukaku vs Benteke
As an admitted Lukaku hater, I positioned myself as a believer in everything Benteke as the two developed simultaneously in the English Premier League.
When the two players broke on to the scene as young budding stars, both showed their respective skills, talents and shortcomings.
The first time I heard of Benteke was when he signed with Aston Villa from Genk in 2012. He made an impression on me with his prowess in the air but more importantly his play with the ball at his feet.
Lukaku arrived in England at Chelsea with much fanfare as an 18-year-old in 2011. Billed as the heir apparent to Didier Drogba, Lukaku had large expectations and sputtered as a youngster trying to make an impact at a huge club.
Lukaku was improving as well and benefited from spells on loan with West Bromwich Albion and Everton, eventually making a permanent move to Everton under Roberto Martinez. Despite scoring plenty of goals (32 in two seasons), I fought against giving Lukaku any credit.
He scored goals but missed more I would claim.
Realizing the truth
Even as it was becoming clear that Lukaku was definitively better than Benteke, I grasped on to small things, like Benteke’s bicycle-kick against Manchester United. I would say things like, “not in Lukaku’s locker.”
Eventually, Benteke’s time at Liverpool ended and Lukaku’s start at Manchester United would prove finally, for me at least, that he is a better player than Benteke.
I know this is not news to anybody, but it has been a personal point of contention for me and I have to finally concede defeat.
It slowly dawned on me that Lukaku was the better player. He continued to score goals, for a top team, in the EPL and Benteke struggled at Crystal Palace. An all-time low in the Benteke fan club was when he insisted on taking a crucial penalty-kick instead of Luka Milivojevic, the designated penalty taker.
He missed and Crystal Palace lost.
In praise of Lukaku
This is all to say, Lukaku deserves all the praise that other top strikers get. It wasn’t his two goals that he scored today against Panama that made me realize, but the wealth of goals he has scored for Manchester United and his determination in the light of heavy criticism.
He is a mix of striker archetypes. He is agile in the box, like a good poacher, able to connect with his teammates, like a false-nine, and stong with his back to goal, like a classic target No.9.
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His mix of talents might highlight his inability to master any of these skills, but his well-rounded portfolio is what makes him a teammates dream.