Romelu Lukaku: Should the striker be dropped for either Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial?

Although the Belgian has a modest scoring record for Manchester United, questions over his finishing and all-around play have resurfaced in light of his recent performances. Should Jose Mourinho drop the striker?

I think I speak for all of us when I say that I’m beyond relieved that Manchester United signed Romelu Lukaku instead of Alvaro Morata in the 2017 summer transfer window.

Lukaku, a proven Premier League goalscorer, was linked with his old club Chelsea for most of the window, with Morata, an unproven striker who mainly came off the bench for Real Madrid, being linked with a move to Old Trafford.

However, United surprised everyone by beating Chelsea to the Belgian’s signature, leaving the Blues no choice but to sign Morata. Since then, Lukaku has scored 31 goals in 62 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils – a respectable figure but not amazing for a striker – whereas Morata has struggled in London, having only found the net 18 times in 59 games for Chelsea.

So why are there still question marks over the Belgian’s ability at Old Trafford?

There are some who would argue that he does not contribute enough to United’s overall attacking play, is caught offside way too often, and has a first touch so bad it belongs in the Sunday League. But is any of this actually true?

Well, sort of. Yes, Lukakau is caught offside far too much for our liking. In fact, he is joint first for most offsides in the Premier League this season with 10. And yes, his first touch can be wild at times, meaning that he is prone to losing possession at critical moments of the game.

However, to say that Lukaku doesn’t offer enough to our overall attacking play is plain and simply wrong. Last season, he grabbed seven assists for United – second only to our star man in midfield Paul Pogba who managed 10 – showing that he is definitely a team player.

Nevertheless, many of Lukaku’s critics argue that either Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial could do a much better job up front. But can they really be trusted with leading United’s forward line?

I would argue a resounding no. Neither Rashford or Martial possess the awareness or strength to hold the ball up for United, with both being better suited to playing on the wing with their blistering pace and flair.

Furthermore, their stats are hardly impressive when compared with Lukaku’s. Rashford has already made a whopping 130 appearances for Manchester United but has only managed 33 goals – an underwhelming figure considering how much better Kylian Mbappe is doing at a younger age in France. Martial has a similarly average rate, having found the net 38 times in 144 appearances for the Red Devils.

Neither has proven that they have the ability to be reaching consistent centre-forward figures like Lukaku has, so they can hardly be trusted with playing the number 9 role week in and week out in Jose Mourinho’s side.

Ultimately, Lukaku’s critics must face the fact that there is no better alternative for the number 9 spot. Yes, he has room to improve – but we should stop trying to compare Lukaku with what we don’t or cannot have. He will never have the nimble footwork of Aguero or the hight work rate of Roberto Firmino. We’ll just have to make do with what we have. So get behind our Talisman!