Former Chelsea man Joe Cole has lambasted Thomas Tuchel’s big-money summer recruit Romelu Lukaku for his recent showings out on the pitch.
Lukaku made the move to Stamford Bridge last year from Inter Milan with Chelsea forking out a fee in the region of £97 million to land his coveted signature after Lukaku’s heroics in Italy’s top flight with Inter.
The Belgium international, however, has struggled to replicate that form on his return to the Chelsea shirt and was once again a disappointment in the attacking third this past weekend in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Crystal Palace.
Thomas Tuchel’s men emerged winners against Palace in the FA Cup semi-final contest on Sunday to book their berth in next month’s Wembley showdown against Liverpool but Lukaku could not get back to his best.
He missed a point-blank chance to find the back of the net after coming off the bench and this invited fresh criticism from the ex-Liverpool and Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole who told ITV ( via The Sun) the striker faces a stern challenge to stay put at the Bridge beyond the summer.
“Lukaku has six weeks to save his Chelsea career.
“You look at Werner and he doesn’t give up. Lukaku wants to be that focal point but he missed a chance.
“When it’s not going for you, it’s not going for you.
“People saw Lukaku as the missing piece of the jigsaw, it didn’t happen.
“But it can come back as quickly as it goes. Football can change in one game.”
