Lukaku - Staying or on his way?

Three years ago on deadline day Everton made a push and garnered a late loan deal. The move sent the Toffees a 20-year old Belgian from Chelsea just as the transfer window slammed shut. The youngster would go on to lead Everton to the cusp of a berth in the Champions League before eventually settling for a spot in the Europa League, tallying 15 goals with 6 assists along the way.

Article by Kevin Harris

That season, Romelu Lukaku, earned a place in every Evertonians heart and had them believing that they were destined to return to being one of the best teams in England. During the summer transfer window that followed, Bill Kenwright and Roberto Martinez made it their mission to bring the Belgian striker back to Goodison Park to stay. After a club record fee of £28 million, Lukaku officially left London for a permanent place on Merseyside. After a down year in 2014-15, the 2015-16 campaign saw a return of 25 goals and 6 assists, but Everton finished in the bottom half of the Premier League and crashed out of both cup competitions in the Semi-Final rounds.

After a third successive campaign without any silverware, Lukaku expressed his desire to leave Everton for a team with Champions League aspirations. His comments sparked outrage among some Evertonians who cried out that nobody was bigger than the club and also brought into question the players work rate. The supporters are quick to point out the fact that Lukaku seemed non-existent in big matches this season against the likes of Man City, Liverpool, and the biggest critics cite the forwards performance against Man United in the FA Cup Semi-Final. What these critics do not bring up is Lukaku’s individual goal scoring effort against Chelsea in the Quarter-Finals that got the Toffees to Wembley in the first place. They also seem to have amnesia about the fact that he led the toffees in scoring last season bagging more than double the next closest player. He even led all of the Europa League in scoring despite the Toffees not making it past the round of 16 during the 2014-15 campaign. So while the striker may not always be the hardest worker or may go rogue in some big moments, Everton would be no more than an afterthought without his goal scoring ability.

Lukaku, his agent, and the 23-year old’s father have spoken out about the striker’s desire to leave Everton for greener pastures. However, he could be lured into staying a blue if new investor Farhad Moshiri holds up on his promise to supply the needed money to the club to return them to one of England’s elite and to become a perennial participant in Europe. He is rumored to have offered the player a contract in the neighborhood of £100,000/week which would be difficult for the player to turn down. With the promises of investing, and even talks of a brand new stadium along the waterfront, Lukaku could be at the head of returning Everton to the status of an elite club, but first he must make the decision to commit to Everton. Looking at his goal scoring return and the promises that lie ahead the Everton supporters should take it easy on the young striker. He is just 23 with a lot of potential and room for growth. Most importantly they need him to sign the deal that keeps him on Merseyside for the foreseeable future.

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