Chelsea verdict: Lukaku was bought to produce big moments like Benzema – he and Tuchel must bury the hatchet and fast
OH WHAT Thomas Tuchel would give to have had Romelu Lukaku and Karim Benzema in opposite colours tonight.
The veteran French striker continues to defy his age and mature like a fine wine at Real Madrid.
Meanwhile Chelsea’s record £97.5m signing could only sit watching his fellow No9 steal the show at Stamford Bridge as Los Blancos claimed a 3-1 win.
Lukaku, 28, finally got on with over 60 minutes gone and his side trailing by two.
But this was no case of cometh the hour cometh the man.
Granted, many would agree that it is a tall task for anyone to haul their team back from two behind against the 13-time European champions.
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However, it is nights like this that Chelsea forked out the dosh to Inter Milan last summer to bring Lukaku back to the Bridge.
Kai Havertz, fantastically brave for his goal, continues to impress and work hard.
But when Lukaku’s moment to spark his side back into life came he, like he has so often this term, failed to deliver.
He completely miscued a header with his first opportunity seconds after coming on.
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But the groans were even louder seconds later as he headed Cesar Azpilicueta’s cross wide.
It might seem harsh to blame this on a man that only featured for the final 30 minutes – especially after Andreas Christensen’s nightmare – but Lukaku was brought in to produce big moments.
And he is failing to deliver.
In fact, his campaign appears to just be wilting away in the hope that he can secure a move back to Inter.
But somehow Tuchel and Lukaku need to work out their differences to try and discover the magic formula that gets him producing world-class moments otherwise Chelsea could end the campaign without a pot to p*** in.
Someone needs to be the bigger man and bury the hatchet – or is it all too late for Tuchel and the Belgian?