Longest Thread For Drivel (or the Romelu Lukaku thread)

[JoeQuince]

Three poor touches against the USA... He still had a goal and an assist. Those few poor touches are forgivable if he can make things happen.

 

Lukaku will create opportunities and convert chances. He may frustrate sometimes. But, he is certain to be productive. He's proven that. He just needs to perfect his niche game. He's 21 and not the finished product. But, if the unfinished product gives us as many goals and assists as he has, it's worth taking the chance that he will become world class for £20-25m. This is especially so, considering the amount of money for which players are currently being bought.

 

I'll say this: there's no way we wouldn't make our investment back on him at less than £30m. That's a certainty. I know we don't have an endless cash supply, but Lukaku isn't going to get worse as a player, and he will carry a high value for years to come.

[NyarkosLeftToe]

I just hope we get him

[Shukes]

This thread is worth it just for Haf's comparisons between Lukaku's first touch and other analogy's! The one punch boxer is one of my faves so far.

looking forward to seeing what you can come up with next.

 

on his sell on value.. there wont be much if anything. Chelsea are going to have a large percentage of anything wee make on him I'm sure. So unless he gets ridiculously good and goes for Bale'illions then I can't see us making much. But at the same time I couldn't see us losing either.

[Matt]

This thread is worth it just for Haf's comparisons between Lukaku's first touch and other analogy's! The one punch boxer is one of my faves so far.

looking forward to seeing what you can come up with next.

 

on his sell on value.. there wont be much if anything. Chelsea are going to have a large percentage of anything wee make on him I'm sure. So unless he gets ridiculously good and goes for Bale'illions then I can't see us making much. But at the same time I couldn't see us losing either.

Me too, maybe thats why I keep arguing

 

Cant agree with the sell on value though. The way the market is continuing to spiral out of control, in 3-5 years time Lukaku could be an average player being sold for 30m. I do agree that I cannot see a loss in the making (unless he gets a catastrophic injury) so from a fiscal risk analysis, its a minimum break-even gamble on a potential superstar.

[Bailey]

 

Fair play for the in depth post.

 

The biggest point for me is "Can have a poor touch" - for me that is like saying someone "can be slow", you either are or you aren't.

 

The opposite is having a great touch - that to me is Berbatov, Lukaku has never showed anything near a great touch for me.

 

Your touch is like a golf swing, its all very well being able to hit a ball when there is no pressure on you, its what it does when you are under pressure. This is where I judge the lad, and he is too far from having abything that resembles a decent first touch, its horrible - it really is.

 

The other night against USA he misplaced/miscontrolled 3 balls - one went to the USA player which phase of play led to their goal, another went out for a throw in, and another I just noted as being a sigh and "oh well". That was in the space of 15 minutes. At any level above championship that is poor, really poor.

 

He is like a boxer who can't jab - he ain't gonna get far just hoping he can land a wild left hook, at lower level his power may be evident, against a proper boxer he will spend all night trying to land one shot because he just can't box.

 

Will his touch get better? It may improve from poor, to below average. Really that is it. The rest we will need to find a way about eliminating the risk associated with that part of his game. Not sure about Barekley comparison with regards touch, that lad wears slippers - its his decsion making thats the problem.

 

I agree with the rest of his strenghths, its his glaring weakness.

 

Its not as simple as can or cant have a good first touch. I have seen Berbatov knock one 5 yards in front of him under no pressure and I have seen Lukaku kill a bill perfectly.

 

Also regarding your bit about Lukaku's touch resulting in the US goal. I have watched the goal back and that is a load of bollocks, which doesnt surprise me at the moment in truth.

 

Lukaku losses the ball 1 min before the goal (bearing in mind USA had a free kick that was easily cleared and KDB gives the ball away when Belgium should have been breaking) because the ball is played behind his run, he gets a nudge from the defender putting him off balance and he sticks a boot back to try and get something on it which doesnt come off. Hardly his fault! Not long after that Lukaku also controls the ball nicely, takes on two defenders and should have done better in a 1 vs 1. Not bad for a guy who is a one trick pony!

[BlueBlood81]

This thread is worth it just for Haf's comparisons between Lukaku's first touch and other analogy's! The one punch boxer is one of my faves so far.

looking forward to seeing what you can come up with next.

 

I liked the Ronny Goodlass quote about his first touch being similar to kicking a ball at railings, funny as fuck!

[duncanmckenzieismagic]

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/487441/Romelu-Lukaku-desperate-to-leave-Chelsea-but-set-to-spurn-20m-offer-from-Tottenham

[Hafnia]

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/487441/Romelu-Lukaku-desperate-to-leave-Chelsea-but-set-to-spurn-20m-offer-from-Tottenham

 

If other clubs rate him as much as he rates himself then a move to Barca, Real, PSG etc will be on the cards. Can't knock ambition, its a big factor, but I think at 21 his place within CL side will be amongst the squad - not always a first name on the sheet. He needs to play, if he becomes the player he already thinks he is then champs league will come.

 

He could go to Celtic, they are in champs league...

[Hafnia]

http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/no-disrespect-to-arsenal-but--chelseas-romelu-lukaku-takes-swipe-at-mesut-ozil-during-brazilgermany-clash-9593499.html

 

He does like to chatter shite doesn't he. Ozil just helped his team batter Brazil 7-1, and like it or not Arsenal are a big club. He's got so much to bloody say.

Edited July 9, 2014 by Hafnia

[cass1878]

I think the truth about Lukaku is he is somewhere in between. He's not as bad as Haf makes out but not as good as others make out either.

 

We will find out a lot about the bloke in the next few weeks, he could push for a move here and develop as a player while being the main man. Or he could do what he is doing at the moment and believe in his own hype, moving to a "bigger" club and spend a lot of time on the bench.

 

Everton would be the best place for him right now. I personally think him and us are a perfect fit, we are both moving in the right direction but need development. He has the potential to be a brilliant goal scorer along the lines of Shearer and Cole, not the best technically but they had a knack of scoring goals and it's clear Rom has that too. Technical ability isn't everything in football, granted ideally we would want a player who has everything but we don't have the money to buy a player like that. Especially a striker.

[Matt]

http://www.skybet.com/football/transfer-specials/event/16622320?aff=10646&dcmp=ss_betlink_TCtab

 

Betting site is blocked at work but title is "Everton backed to re-sign Lukaku", from Sky Bet. Can anyone tell me if theres anything behind the link?

[Wall Writer]

http://www.skybet.com/football/transfer-specials/event/16622320?aff=10646&dcmp=ss_betlink_TCtab

 

Betting site is blocked at work but title is "Everton backed to re-sign Lukaku", from Sky Bet. Can anyone tell me if theres anything behind the link?

 

Nothing to see. Just a page giving the odds of him signing for different clubs

 

Romelu Lukaku to sign for before 2nd September 2014 Transfer Specials | Monday 1st September 2014 | 23:00

Specials

Sign For Before 2nd September Loan deals do count, if player does not move clubs all bets are settled as losers Atletico Madrid 11/8 Everton 15/8 Juventus 6/1 Tottenham 10/1 Arsenal 12/1 Valencia 12/1 Liverpool 14/1 Wolfsburg 14/1 PSG 16/1 Real Madrid 16/1 Monaco 18/1 Manchester City 25/1 Manchester Utd 25/1

For all events in-play now and coming up see our Live Betting Calendar

[Hafnia]

I really don't understand why he isn't at a new club, Mourinho doesn't rate him. He is up for sale for £20m which apparently most clubs would be daft not to sign him for - this figure fits for more clubs nowadays.

 

One way or another, just get it sorted.

[MC11]

Until someone can give a better option I am all for Lukaku coming back.

Edited July 9, 2014 by MiguelCotto

[Aidan]

 

Its no secret I like the lad, I dont think Ive argued someones case this much ever. But I started thinking; maybe I'm letting my admiration for the lad get in the way of a proper analysis of him. So, rather than concentrate on the positives, which I think are clear (Ive summarized them with links to proof where required), I decided to pick up on this negatives put forward...

 

Pros

• Goal scorer & Creator 15 in 31 apps (2 subs) + 6 assists. Responsible for combined total of 21 from 61 goals Premiership goals (33%, a large portion of them being winning game deciders) http://www.espnfc.com/player/139437/romelu-lukaku?season=2013 http://www.soccerbase.com/players/player.sd?player_id=56521&season_id=143 http://www.evertonfc.com/first-team-stats-2013/14
• 21
• Strong
• Fast
• Sell on value
• Rated by Martinez
• Proven over 2 EPL seasons
• "Super Sub" or starter
• Ability to score in most scenarios (head, both feet, 1 touch, driving run, inside and outside box) http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/players/profile.html/romelu-lukaku

Cons

• Price tag Never been argued that its inflated, I've always said 15m + potential add-ons up to 20m.

• Can go missing in games Who doesnt? Not a great argument but he will only improve and Martinez is the man to get the best out of him. Even the games where he isnt scoring, hes making an impact a lot of the time. Same argument can be applied to Barkley.

  Can have a poor touch Who doesnt? Some times its great, sometimes its terrible, like any developing player. I wont argue that this will be perfected but it can and will be improved upon but this is a matter of opinion and no point arguing individual beliefs. Again, Barkley can be used as a comparison here.
• Struggles as a target man Agreed, but then play to his strengths. You dont take a player like Barkley for example and play him on the wing or a holding midfielder to improve his all-round game, you play to his strengths. Same applies to Lukaku - let him run on to it. For when running through isnt working, use him as a distraction / battering ram to open space for others to exploit.

• Attitude Such a strange statement - "thinks he's better than he is". You want him to have the mentality that average is ok? He wants to be the best, he is aiming for the top. Its called ambition and good on him for being positive. However, he now has to walk the walk more consistently, which he has admitted is up to him. Martinez has repeatedly praised the lad for his mentality, praising his constructive arrogance like he has done with Barkley and Gerry.
  "1 goal in 11 games" - 1st game into that run, he setup Oviedo for the winner (under pressure, turned his man - Im sure the argument against this will be "he was trying to shoot", which is irrelevant - he setup a goal). The next game, against Arsenal, he setup Deulafeu and again not intended, but occupied defenders and got the slightest of touches to take it to Gerrys feet (who then did the hard work). 3rd game into this run, assist for Barry goal. Nothing to note in the Swansea or Sunderland game but then his 1 goal in 11 was the winner against Southampton. So, out of the first 6 games of this terrible scoring streak, he is directly responsible for 4 goals. Not bad going. Nothing to mention in the Stoke game, assists Barry for opening goal against Norwich. The next game against WBA, assists Mirallas. Liverpool game, disappears along with the rest of the team. So 11 games, 1 goal and 5 assists - responsible for 6 goals in those 11 games, no matter how intentional or not.

All that I can conclude is that people are understandably seriously put off with the price tag, because it represents the majority of our budget, and so are trying to find any little thing to justify why we shouldnt invest the money. Thing is, to address the negatives, you can get your chequebook our for 40m+, because you're talking about a Suarez / Ageuro/ etc quality player. Or we can invest in a youngster our manager believes in and enjoy the benefits we already have seen.

I mentioned Barkley, who we would be wanting for around double the 25m City recently offered, despite the fact he contributed less goals and assists. You want to argue more technical proficiency? I understand why, but then Barkley is wanting in a few areas of his game too. The point Im trying to make is, I cant help thinking the critics of Lukaku will be as harsh on one of our own.

edit: sorry its a bit rushed, called into a meeting sooner than expected

 

 

Best post I've seen on this site and agree with every word of it. Thanks for sharing your opinion!

[Aidan]

 

Fair play for the in depth post.

 

The biggest point for me is "Can have a poor touch" - for me that is like saying someone "can be slow", you either are or you aren't.

 

The opposite is having a great touch - that to me is Berbatov, Lukaku has never showed anything near a great touch for me.

 

Your touch is like a golf swing, its all very well being able to hit a ball when there is no pressure on you, its what it does when you are under pressure. This is where I judge the lad, and he is too far from having abything that resembles a decent first touch, its horrible - it really is.

 

The other night against USA he misplaced/miscontrolled 3 balls - one went to the USA player which phase of play led to their goal, another went out for a throw in, and another I just noted as being a sigh and "oh well". That was in the space of 15 minutes. At any level above championship that is poor, really poor.

 

He is like a boxer who can't jab - he ain't gonna get far just hoping he can land a wild left hook, at lower level his power may be evident, against a proper boxer he will spend all night trying to land one shot because he just can't box.

 

Will his touch get better? It may improve from poor, to below average. Really that is it. The rest we will need to find a way about eliminating the risk associated with that part of his game. Not sure about Barekley comparison with regards touch, that lad wears slippers - its his decsion making thats the problem.

 

I agree with the rest of his strenghths, its his glaring weakness.

 

I like to take a lot of things out of the equation.

 

He is 21, yes his touch is poor, everyone has their weakness, however, at 21 he is a premier league goal machine. That to me alone withstands his valuation. He has 5 or 6 years yet before he's even in his prime. Imagine what that would be like for us? Somebody scoring 20-30 goals a season? Imagine if we sold him on in a few seasons time? If we buy him at 20 mil and sell him at 24 years old he would be worth over double that if he can score 20+ a season.

 

We have to buy him. We know he can score goals for us, and at the age he is at, personally I believe he is worth £20m.

[Matt]

 

Best post I've seen on this site and agree with every word of it. Thanks for sharing your opinion!

cheers man

 

the envelope is in the post...

[duncanmckenzieismagic]

I really don't understand why he isn't at a new club, Mourinho doesn't rate him. He is up for sale for £20m which apparently most clubs would be daft not to sign him for - this figure fits for more clubs nowadays.

 

One way or another, just get it sorted.

 

Quite simple really, he has not been available because he has neen away playing in a little football tournament in Brazil and is now having a break with his family back in Belgium

 

As you say though Im sure there will be plenty of teams after him once he returns

[Mirallas]

Lukaku and Tim Cahill each posted a picture of their reactions during last night's game. 1+1=2, Lukaku is clearly giving us a hint he's staying at Everton.

 

[Matt]

Or he's doing the #timcahilling that started trending....

 

Edited July 9, 2014 by Matt

[Mirallas]

Or he's doing the #timcahilling that started trending....

 

 

I'm glad you got the clue

[duncanmckenzieismagic]

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/488068/Everton-and-Tottenham-watch-on-as-Chelsea-s-Romelu-Lukaku-saga-takes-ANOTHER-twist

[Romey 1878]

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/488068/Everton-and-Tottenham-watch-on-as-Chelsea-s-Romelu-Lukaku-saga-takes-ANOTHER-twist

 

Can't wait for this story to be over, whichever way it goes.

[Brett Angel]

He's Deffo not worth saga. He's a good promising striker but fuck me you would think were battling for messi's signature. The guy lost his WC place to a liverpool, soon to be reserve player.

[Mirallas]

Dammit I should have taken that Wolfsburg bet when it was still 14/1 then. It was the one I believed in the most. When Wolfsburg comes along, a rumour isn't just a rumour.

[Hafnia]

Incredible the amount of hype the lad gets, I do kind of understand to be honest. Its like watching Robot Wars years ago and you see this 70kg beast that has chain saws, sledge hammers, flame throwers, rocket launchers, amour plated the lot - you think "look at that, its got to win"

 

The reality is that the remote control malfunctions and some small mobile thing with a fork lift truck attachment just flips it on its back.

[Brett Angel]

Incredible the amount of hype the lad gets, I do kind of understand to be honest. Its like watching Robot Wars years ago and you see this 70kg beast that has chain saws, sledge hammers, flame throwers, rocket launchers, amour plated the lot - you think "look at that, its got to win"

 

The reality is that the remote control malfunctions and some small mobile thing with a fork lift truck attachment just flips it on its back.

Hahahaha exactly. best eupheuphemism i've ever read.

[MC11]

There's a good martinez interview on Sky Sports soundcloud now.

 

He says a long the lines of having to respect Lukaku's position. To me that means he's not trying to force it on him. Obviously Lukaku is looking at other options.

 

The problem I have is us waiting on Lukaku's decision will most definately have a negative affect on us doing anything else in the transfer market. If Martinez wants to hold out so be it. I just hope we don't lose plan B because of it.

 

All in all from the interviews I've read and heard from Martinez he sounds disappointed in the progress of the Lukaku deal.

 

I don't think we'll get him and that will be the choice of the player not ours.

 

He absolutely confirmed. Deulofeu will not be coming back to Everton.

[Stuie Hayllor]

 

Can't wait for this story to be over, whichever way it goes.

Agreed! Our summer spending seems to hinge on Rom's decision.

[Hafnia]

There's a good martinez interview on Sky Sports soundcloud now.

 

He says a long the lines of having to respect Lukaku's position. To me that means he's not trying to force it on him. Obviously Lukaku is looking at other options.

 

The problem I have is us waiting on Lukaku's decision will most definately have a negative affect on us doing anything else in the transfer market. If Martinez wants to hold out so be it. I just hope we don't lose plan B because of it.

 

All in all from the interviews I've read and heard from Martinez he sounds disappointed in the progress of the Lukaku deal.

 

I don't think we'll get him and that will be the choice of the player not ours.

 

He absolutely confirmed. Deulofeu will not be coming back to Everton.

 

I think Martinez wants him because he sees a physical threat and a goal scorer and he knows how Everton works. The reality is that unless he becomes Michael Ricketts overnight that we don't risk losing too much at £18m ish.

 

The thing is, does Martinez now think "wait there lad, you aren't quite as good as you think you are and there is work to be done with you, but for some reason you think you are already there..." - this is my concern,

 

I would have thought this world cup would have humbled Lukaku a little bit, but as soon as I seen comments where he was laughing at "Ozil playing for Arsenal" - it makes you realise that his ego needs to be piped down somewhat.