A leagueThey have felt his presence at Napoli. ‘Big Rom’ weighed on the defense for an hour, but he’s not the old one yet. Lukaku will start his catch-up race at Inter in 2023. Big Rom is on his way back.
The unbeaten leader in Serie A is no more. A furious Inter put Napoli over the knee.
Not Romelu Lukaku scored for the Nerazzurri. Spitsbrother Edin Dzeko decided the topper with a striking head, but ‘Big Rom’ cheered exuberantly. He believes that Inter can still catch up with eight points since Wednesday evening. The title is not gone yet.
“Until the trophy is lifted, anything is possible in football,” says Lukaku. “Do I believe in it? All the time. In this sport you have to believe in the impossible. So let’s talk once more at the end of the season. The championship ends on June 6, boys. Not on January 4.”
With Lukaku, coach Simone Inzaghi hopes to have more punch. Instill more fear in the opposition. In Italian football, Lukaku still has that fear factor – they make fun of him less than in England, despite that failed interlude at Chelsea.
Lukaku was certainly physically present once morest Napoli. A booster, especially in the opening phase. The South Korean Kim quickly stopped him from a first chance, when he prevented ‘Big Rom’ from charging at Meret on the edge of the box. Lukaku dived into the box with a powerful action, but his ball handling lacked finesse. He set up a brilliant break, playing Dzeko. He sent a cross to Dimarco, who was unable to press on goal from a difficult angle. Before the break kicked hurriedly over with his right to the box.
The best ‘Big Rom’ would have done more with that chance, but should you expect more from an attacker who has played four full matches in the past six months?
On the hour mark, Inzaghi took a tired Lukaku to the side. His grades were nothing to write home regarding. 18 ball keys, 5 good passes, 1 great chance created, 1 shot on target, 10 ball losses and 5 wrong controls. The ball handling is still work. Usually it gets sharper by the minute and with confidence.
Lukaku’s plan is clear. In the coming months he wants to force a permanent transfer to Inter. He absolutely wants to stay. But he still has something to prove. The rent of 8 million euros and his salary of 12 million euros net must now finally start to pay off.
“I just hope to do well with Inter over the next six months, work hard,” he told Sky Italia on Sunday. “Ultimately we will have to sit down with Chelsea. And I hope we find a solution. Despite my great love for the Inter fans and for the club, I don’t see my career ending here. The idea is still to go to Anderlecht. I am 30 years old. My son Romeo now goes to school here and also plays in the Inter-academy. Things are going well, Inter always has the ambition to grow further. I want to stay here and achieve great things.”
He took a small step once morest Napoli.
That big one is for the coming weeks, when his match rhythm and checks are back on point.
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