‘Ask Chelsea’: European forward addresses future after impressive international display

On-loan Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku offered a simple response to the suggestion that his performance against England on Tuesday night was a desire to prove himself here again.

Belgium and England drew the friendly game at Wembley 2-2, following a last-minute equaliser from Jude Bellingham after Ivan Toney and Youri Tielemans had grabbed the game’s other goals. 

Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Lukaku described what it felt like to concede a last-minute equaliser. 

Lukaku gave a simple answer to reporters after the game (Image credit: Getty Images)“That’s football at the end of the day,” he said. “It’s not over until the referee blows the final whistle, but we have to continue and see progress, and we had an okay performance today.”

Lukaku captained the side before being substituted in the match, helping lay on an assist to Tielemans with a brilliant trivela pass at the end of the second half. He did have to laugh off a question when asked if his own strong performance was the result of his desire to want to impress when returning to England, however.

“Ha ha, I don’t know – you’ll have to ask Chelsea about it,” Lukaku retorted. 

Lukaku is currently on loan at Roma (Image credit: Getty Images)The 30-year-old is set to return to Stamford Bridge in the summer when his loan spell at Roma finishes, though he isn’t expected to stick around long until he leaves the club again – this time likely on a permanent transfer.

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Indeed, the Belgian has been linked with another return to Serie A and even Saudi Arabia, as Chelsea look to recoup as much of the £97.5m they paid for him the summer of 2021. That deal didn’t work out as expected, with Lukaku’s Chelsea return quickly turning into a disaster under Thomas Tuchel.

A season-long loan at Inter Milan in 2022/23 preceded this term at Roma, with Lukaku’s time in the Premier League and England seemingly set to be over for good. 

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