Romelu Lukaku

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Romelu Lukaku
Romelu Lukaku 271797a.jpg
Lukaku in 2012.
Personal information
Full name Romelu Menama Lukaku[1]
Date of birth (1993-05-13) 13 May 1993 (age 20)[1]
Place of birth Antwerp, Belgium
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[2]
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Chelsea
Youth career
1999–2003 Rupel Boom
2003–2006 Lierse
2006–2009 Anderlecht
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2008–2011 Anderlecht 73 (33)
2011– Chelsea 8 (0)
2012–2013 → West Bromwich Albion (loan) 35 (17)
National team‡
2008 Belgium U15 4 (1)
2011 Belgium U18 1 (0)
2009 Belgium U21 5 (1)
2010– Belgium 19 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 May 2013.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10 February 2013

Romelu Menama Lukaku (born 13 May 1993) is a Belgian footballer of Congolese descent, who plays as a striker for Premier League club West Bromwich Albion on loan from Chelsea, and the Belgium national team. He started his career with local side Rupel Boom, before being scouted and joining Lierse. He played well and attracted many clubs to his talents. He alerted Anderlecht and signed for the Belgian Pro League side in 2006. Lukaku continued his development with Anderlecht and made his professional debut while still at school at the age of 16. During his time at Anderlecht, he was dubbed as the new Didier Drogba, the player whom he idolized growing up. Whilst playing for Anderlecht, he became the 2009–10 top scorer in Belgium as Anderlecht won the Belgian championship, and won the Belgian Ebony Shoe in 2011. In the 2011 summer transfer window, Lukaku signed for English Premier League club Chelsea for an undisclosed fee and penning a 5-year contract.

Contents

Club career [edit]

Early career [edit]

Lukaku joined his local team Rupel Boom at the age of five.[3] After four seasons at Rupel Boom, Lukaku was discovered by scouts of Lierse SK, a Belgian Pro League team with an established youth academy. He played for Lierse from 2004 until 2006,[3] scoring 121 goals in 68 games.[4] After Lierse were relegated from the Belgian Pro League, Anderlecht bought no less than 13 youth players from Lierse in the 2006 mid-season, one of which was Lukaku. He played three more years as a youth player with Anderlecht, scoring 131 goals in 93 games.

Anderlecht [edit]

When he turned 16 on 13 May 2009, Lukaku signed a professional contract with Anderlecht until 2012.[5] and 11 days later he made his Belgian First Division debut on 24 May 2009 in the championship play off match against Standard Liège as a 69th minute substitute for defender Víctor Bernárdez.[6] Anderlecht lost the match 1–0. He scored his first goal at senior level against Zulte Waregem in the 89th minute, after coming on as substitute for Kanu after 69 minutes.

Chelsea [edit]

In August 2011 Lukaku joined English club Chelsea, for a fee reported to be around €12 million (£10 million), rising to €20 million (£17 million) in add-ons. Lukaku was given the number 18 shirt and signed a five-year contract.[7] He made his home debut in a 3–1 victory over Norwich City in the 83rd minute, coming on as a substitute for Fernando Torres.[8]

Lukaku made his first start for the club in the League Cup against Fulham. Chelsea went on to win the match on penalties. Lukaku spent the majority of the season playing for the reserves. On 13 May 2012, he started his first league match against Blackburn Rovers and turned in a man of the match performance providing an assist for John Terry's opener.[9] However, Lukaku stressed that he was disappointed with his involvement at the end of his debut season, revealing that, after his side's UEFA Champions League win on 19 May, he refused to hold the trophy as he didn't feel like a winner.[10]

Loan to West Bromwich Albion [edit]

Lukaku playing for West Bromwich Albion in September 2012.

After speculation linking Lukaku to a loan move to Fulham,[11] on 10 August 2012 he joined West Bromwich Albion on a season long loan deal.[12] He scored his first league goal eight days later, coming on as a substitute on the 77th minute in a 3–0 win against Liverpool.[13] He made his full debut in a win against Reading at The Hawthorns, scoring the game's only goal.[14]

On 24 November, Lukaku came on as a 70th minute substitute for Shane Long and netted a penalty and provided an assist to Marc-Antoine Fortune, as West Brom defeated Sunderland 4-2.[15] The win proved to be West Brom's fourth consecutive win in the top flight for the first time since 1980.[16] On 12 January 2013, Lukaku had his first multi-goal game in the Premier League, giving West Brom a 2-0 lead against Reading, before a late come back gave the Berkshire club a 3-2 victory.[17]

After controversially claiming that he did not want to go back to his parent club and that he wished to stay at West Brom for another year,[18] Lukaku told the press that he still wished to become a legend at Stamford Bridge.[19] On 11 February, Lukaku came on off the bench and scored his 10th Premier league goal of the season against Liverpool in a match that ended 2-0.[20] He scored his second brace of the campaign, scoring both goals for West Brom in their 2-1 defeat of Sunderland on 23 February.[21] On 9 March, in a league match against Swansea City, Lukaku scored the equalising goal, before having a penalty kick saved; West Brom eventually won the game courtesy of a Jonathan de Guzmán own goal.[22] On 19 May, coming on as a second half substitute Lukaku scored an incredible second-half perfect hat-trick, as West Brom came from three goals down to draw 5-5 in the season's final home game against Manchester United.[23] The game was Sir Alex Ferguson's 1500 and last match in charge of United and the highest scoring draw in the history of the Premier League.[24] Despite being loaned out by the club, Lukaku outscored his Chelsea teammates in the Premier League that season, being the number six top goal scorer of the Premier League with 17 goals.

International career [edit]

Lukaku was a member of the Belgium under-21 team and scored a goal on his debut against Slovenia.[25] On 24 February 2010, Lukaku was named for the first time in the Belgium squad for the friendly against Croatia.[26] On 17 November 2010, he scored his first two international goals in the friendly match against Russia.[27]

Lukaku scored his first goal in almost two years for the national team, netting the winner in a 4-2 friendly victory over rivals the Netherlands on 15 August 2012.[28]

Personal life [edit]

Lukaku was born in Antwerp,[29] a city in northern Belgium. His father, Roger Lukaku,[30] played professional football and was capped at international level by Zaire.[31] He has a younger brother named Jordan, who has progressed through the youth academy at Anderlecht.[30] Lukaku was the subject of an acclaimed television documentary series called De School Van Lukaku (Lukaku's School) shown on the Dutch-speaking Eén network. The reality show followed the teenage Lukaku and his classmates during the course of a year at the Saint-Guidon Institute, a school in Brussels, where the footballer was based while with the Anderlecht youth team.[32] In 2009, the series followed the school as it made a field trip to London visiting Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground. Lukaku said at the time “What a stadium. If one day in my life I will cry, it will be the day I play here. I love Chelsea.”[33]

Career statistics [edit]

As of 19 May 2013[1][29][34][35]
Club Season League Cup1 Europe Total
Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists Apps Goals Assists
Anderlecht 2008–09 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
2009–10 33 15 6 1 0 0 11 4 5 45 19 11
2010–11 37 16 7 2 0 0 11 4 0 50 20 7
2011–12 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0
Belgium 73 33 13 3 0 0 22 8 5 98 41 18
Chelsea 2011–12 8 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 12 0 1
West Bromwich Albion (loan) 2012–13 35 17 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 38 17 4
England 43 17 8 7 0 0 0 0 0 50 17 8
Career Total 116 50 21 10 0 0 22 8 5 148 58 26
1Also includes other competitive competitions, including the FA Cup and League Cup.

International goals [edit]

Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 17 November 2010 Tsentralnyi Profsoyuz Stadion, Voronezh, Russia  Russia 1–0 2–0 Friendly
2. 17 November 2010 Tsentralnyi Profsoyuz Stadion, Voronezh, Russia  Russia 2–0 2–0 Friendly
3. 15 August 2012 King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium  Netherlands 3–2 4–2 Friendly

Honours [edit]

Club [edit]

Anderlecht
Chelsea

Individual [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Romelu Menama Lukaku". Soccerway. Global Sports Media. Retrieved 3 August 2011. 
  2. ^ "Player Profile: Romelu Lukaku". Premier League. Retrieved 31 July 2012. 
  3. ^ a b "Romelu Lukaku – Spielerwechsel". Transfermarkt.de. Retrieved 23 December 2010. 
  4. ^ "The Full Interview: Teenage Sensation Reveals All About His Life, Loves And His Footballing 'Gift From God'". Goal.com. 17 January 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2011. 
  5. ^ "Lukaku : " Je sais que je serai récompensé de mes efforts "" (in French). FootGoal.net. 2 September 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2010. 
  6. ^ "Standard is opnieuw kampioen van België" (in Dutch). Sporza. 24 May 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2009. 
  7. ^ http://www.nieuwsblad.be/sportwereld/cnt/DC3DOMDV.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ^ "Chelsea 3–1 Norwich". BBC Sport. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2011. 
  9. ^ Szczepanik, Nick (14 May 2012). "Chelsea cruise against Blackburn Rovers ahead of Champions League final in Munich". The Independent (London). 
  10. ^ "Romelu Lukaku felt no joy at Chelsea's Champions League win". BBC Sport. 31 May 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012. 
  11. ^ "Fulham in talks to loan Lukaku from rivals Chelsea". Goal.com. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012. 
  12. ^ "LUKAKU WEST BROM LOAN". chelseafc.com. 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2012-08-10. 
  13. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/19221306
  14. ^ "West Brom 1-0 Reading" BBC Sport. 22 September 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2013.
  15. ^ "Sunderland 2 West Brom 4: Albion rewrite the history books as they go up to third". Daily Mail. 24 November 2012. 
  16. ^ "West Brom went third in the Premier League after recording four successive top-flight wins for the first time since 1980 with victory at Sunderland.". BBC Sport. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 5 February 2013. 
  17. ^ "Reading 3-2 West Bromwich Albion". ESPNFC. 12 January 2013. 
  18. ^ "I don't care what Chelsea are doing at the moment: Lukaku wants to stay at West Brom". Daily Mail. 14 January 2013. 
  19. ^ "Romelu Lukaku believes he can become a legend at Chelsea". Sky Sports. 5 February 2013. 
  20. ^ "Gareth McAuley and Romelu Lukaku scored late goals as West Brom pinched a remarkable victory at Liverpool to end a sequence of six games without a win.". BBC Sport. 11 February 2013. 
  21. ^ "West Brom 2 Sunderland 1: Lukaku at the double as Baggies ease past Black Cats". Daily Mail. 23 February 2013. 
  22. ^ "Romelu Lukaku continued his good form as West Brom beat Swansea to move up to seventh in the Premier League.". BBC Sport. 9 March 2013. 
  23. ^ "West Brom 5 Manchester United 5: Fergie's career ends with ten-goal thriller". Daily Mail. 19 May 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013. 
  24. ^ "Manchester United share 10 goals with West Brom in Alex Ferguson's finale". The Guardian. 19 May 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013. 
  25. ^ "Jugend forscht: Romelu Lukaku und Iker Muniain" (in German). Transfermarkt. 14 October 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2010. 
  26. ^ "Romelu Lukaku est officiellement Diable Rouge" (in French). DH.be. 24 February 2010. Retrieved 17 November 2010. 
  27. ^ http://www.goal.com/en-us/match/54146/russia-vs-belgium/report
  28. ^ "Belgium 4-2 Netherlands: Mertens inspires impressive win for hosts". Goal.com. 15 August 2012. 
  29. ^ a b "Romelu Lukaku". ESPN Soccernet. Retrieved 28 March 2011. 
  30. ^ a b Wilson, Jeremy (28 October 2010). "Jose Mourinho and Real Madrid rival Chelsea for 'new Didier Drogba'". The Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved 6 August 2011. 
  31. ^ "Menama Lukaku". FIFA. Retrieved 6 August 2011. 
  32. ^ Is it true Romelu Lukaku starred in a documentary tv series about his schooldays? Socqer.com retrieved 7 August 2011.
  33. ^ Chelsea new signing Romelu Lukaku says move to Stamford Bridge is a dream come true. Daily Telegraph, 8, August, 2011.
  34. ^ "Top scorer Romelu Lukaku : Title is next goal". R.S.C. Anderlecht. Retrieved 17 November 2010. 
  35. ^ "Leistungsdaten". Transfermarkt.de. Retrieved 12 April 2011. 

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Romelu Lukaku
West Bromwich Albion F.C. – current squad
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