World Cup 2022: Romelu Lukaku comeback for Belgium against Morocco?

Only 5 appearances for Inter

The “Rode Duivels” long for the comeback of Romelu Lukaku (29). The need for more penetrating attacking power in Belgium’s World Cup team is so great that national coach Roberto Martínez would halfway ignore medical advice. “From a medical point of view, he could only play in the third group game,” admitted Martínez ahead of Belgium’s second group game on Sunday (2:00 p.m.) against Morocco.

But Martínez kept at least one place on the bench open for the Inter Milan player – in the first game against Canada, Michy Batshuayi (29, Fenerbahce) was another ex-Chelsea pro in the starting XI and scored the winning goal.

De Bruyne on Lukaku: “Of course Romelu hasn’t played much lately”

According to Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne (31), that would be an important signal. For your own team, but also for your opponent. “I think that alone would cause fear in the opposing defense,” said De Bruyne, who also referred to a not insignificant fact: “Of course Romelu hasn’t played much lately.”

That’s almost an understatement. The 29-year-old attacker played a total of five competitive games for Inter, who brought him back on loan just a year after the €113m transfer from Chelsea, this season. A stubborn hamstring injury has been bothering the massive striker for some time. Which begs the question of what impact Lukaku could have on Belgium’s game at all once he finally plays again. Belgium’s record goalscorer will hardly be seen in top form at this World Cup.

Still, Martínez was reluctant to be without his ailing player and took him to Qatar, despite acknowledging that Lukaku might not play until the knockout stages. The Belgians’ golden generation, who finished third in Russia in 2018, is aging and even captain Eden Hazard has acknowledged that Belgium aren’t as strong as they were four years ago – which he certainly is.

This is particularly frustrating for the perfectionist De Bruyne. The 31-year-old is worried after the poor 1-0 start against Canada that the Red Devils might have the last chance to win the World Cup: “Our level of play has been lower for a long time and I worry about that sometimes . I hope our level will rise.”

And for the former Bundesliga star, even a Lukaku out of shape would make a huge difference: “Romelu is simply a top player with huge importance for us. With him we have completely different options. His return will be a boost.” Apparently Martínez agrees. The Spaniard is eyeing a squad place for the 29-year-old against Morocco.

In addition to Lukaku and Batshuayi, the Belgians also have experienced Dries Mertens (35, Galatasaray) and Loïs Openda (22, Lens) in their squad for the top striker. “He is currently making a good impression and has recently trained twice with the team. We’ll wait and see how he copes and look at him again after the final training session,” Martínez announced on Saturday.

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