Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku is determined to make his mark at Stamford Bridge but accepts he may have to go out on loan first to realise that dream.
But Chelsea striker is determined to shine at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku is determined to make his mark at Stamford Bridge but accepts he may have to go out on loan first to realise that dream.
The 19-year-old Belgium international, who signed in an £18million deal from Anderlecht last summer, has seen his opportunities limited so far in West London.
Lukaku scored twice in the 4-2 pre-season victory over Seattle Sounders during the Blues' summer tour of America, the first time he has found the net for the club.
And while the youngster, who has started just one Premier League game for Chelsea, would love to be part of manager Roberto Di Matteo's plans, he accepts he may need to get more action under his belt elsewhere first.
Lukaku told
Sky Sports News: "If I can stay here at Chelsea and be part of the starting XI and score a lot of goals for the club and make the team win, that's good for me and for the club as well.
"But if I can go on loan and play in another team and score goals and then come back and explode it will be good as well.
"I just keep my feet grounded and work hard each day and then after the tour we will see what will happen."
Positive and negative
Despite only making fleeting appearances last season, the majority coming from the bench, Lukaku still feels that his career progressed during his first 12 months with the new European champions.
"It was difficult, there was a positive side and a negative side," he added. "The negative side is that I didn't play as much as I wanted, but the positive side is that I improved my overall game a lot.
"That's more important as a 19-year-old, to improve each day, and that's something that I did last year."
Blues boss Di Matteo admitted he will make a decision on Lukaku's immediate future following their pre-season tour, but revealed he was happy to see the talented teenager among the goals.
He added: "We had a talk at the start of pre-season and I'm very keen to see him perform for us and then we will see what is going to happen.
"It's good to see that he is a danger, he scores goals and that what a striker has to do in the team."
