Author of a successful entry into Villa Park, Romelu Lukaku was the great architect of Chelsea’s victory against Aston Villa on Sunday, during Boxing Day. The long-awaited awakening of the Belgian by the supporters of the Blues.
Better late than never. After a resounding debut for his comeback to Chelsea (4 goals in his first 4 games in all competitions), Romelu Lukaku had stalled for many weeks. It must be said that between an injury having made him miss 6 games and the contraction of the Covid-19 having pushed him away from the lawns for 3 more games, the 28-year-old striker could not express the full measure of his talent. on the side of Stamford Bridge, as he would have liked, in recent weeks.
But the Belgian international (101 caps, 68 goals) has resources, both mental and physical. This he again demonstrated on the lawn of Aston Villa (3-1), Sunday, allowing Chelsea to regain victory in the Premier League while offering Blues fans a first success during Boxing Day for 3 years. Romelu Lukaku had yet started the meeting on the bench at Villa Park, his trainer, Thomas Tuchel, initially wishing to spare him in anticipation of the very busy calendar of festivals in England.
Lukaku kills two birds with one stone at Villa Park
Faced with the poverty of the spectacle offered by the two teams and the difficulty for the Londoners to gain the upper hand over the Villans at the break (1-1), the former PSG coach decided to launch his No. 1 offensive asset. on return from the locker room. A choice that paid off since, without the Red Devil, not sure that Chelsea would have found a smile at the end of this game. By cutting at the near post, with a header, a center from Callum Hudson-Odoi, he first gave the advantage to Chelsea (56th), scoring his first league goal since September 11, already against Aston Villa .
Luk who’s back! 👊#AvlChe pic.twitter.com/nJVNLz2Bwz
– Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 26, 2021
At the end of the game, Lukaku launched a reminder to everyone by distinguishing himself from a rush of 50 meters combining speed and physical power to get rid of opposing defenders as only he knows how to do, finally forcing Ezri Konsa to do so. mow in mid-flight in the surface. This allowed Jorginho to make the break in the very last moments on the penalty spot. In addition to his involvement in the two goals of his team in the second act, the ex-scorer of MU or even Inter weighed heavily on the defense, creating lags and serving his partners in the area. dangerous.
“I was tired of not coming home until the end”, reveals Lukaku
“I needed a performance like this”, confided the Belgian at the microphone of Sky Sports at the end of the meeting. “I try to be less static and to move a lot. What I prefer to do is dive into space, so that I can play with my speed and my power. As in the penalty phase “, he added. His trainer admitted to having taken a small risk, nevertheless not hiding his satisfaction.
“Those 45 minutes was more than my fitness trainer had indicated, but we felt we could take a risk. He was away for a month, then he struggles to regain his rhythm and he also had the Coronavirus. Romelu just needs to make sure he regains his form after his injury. And it’s not easy when you’ve had an injury like hers. There is no doubt that it is super important. Each player is super important, but Romelu is a key player ”, explained TT. No longer established since October 16 in the Premier League, Lukaku, who had “Fed up with not coming in until the end”, hopes to finally be able to continue, and above all to confirm.
