Lukaku taking things 'day by day'

Romelu Lukaku makes pledge to Everton fans after letting his mind wander last year

He remains a paradox for the fans – clearly a lovely lad and probably the best striker we've had since the 80s (some 80s hyperbole for you TWers, you know you love it). However, how does one truly warm to a player that doesn't care too much about the club?

I suppose if we want to keep him, the onus is on the club to match his ambitions. Ridiculous really, but the reality of it.

I think you might have read too much into it?

It could be, "I'm happy with the team," my teammates are all great fellas to be with;
It could be, "I'm happy with the team," we are like a family;
It could be, "I'm happy with the team," no one is sulking for lack of game time now; etc, etc.

Even if he meant what you think, what's wrong?

Come the end of the season, if he's maintained this level and finishes as league top scorer, and at his age, it may become a case of how crazy are we prepared to go to keep him, irrespective of that current deal.

Bananas as it all is, I think we need to keep him if realistically possible. It's not like his value is about to drop any time in the next few seasons, so there would always be a large return available if we or he wanted to end it down the line. We're already well in profit with him, including his salary so far and yet to come. Definitely one of our better buys!

Of course, he might surprise us all and want to stay at the club above all else...

Short of everyone cancelling their pay to view, though...

We are in a relatively fortunate position with Lukaku monetarily, so we can at least stretch it a tad or ten whilst still being able to record it as a favourable transaction down the line should he go: a happy position to be in by that measure. It's all down to the club to respond as they see fit.

But Hell, let's keep him!

However much we got offered for him, I think we would find it almost impossible to find a player as effective as him. Wonder if he might give us another season if our upturn in form continues?

1. We achieve Champions League status
2. Lukaku accepts Europa League Status
3. No-one comes in for him during the summer.

if the club doesn't achieve Europa League status then the club is at the whim of decent offers.

We can moan about his work rate etc. but none of his goals were tap ins on Saturday, they were all pretty exquisite to be honest.

We have the top scorer in the most competitive league in the world and he's theoretically a few years off his peak, if we set the team up to supply him and support him by getting goals from elsewhere, we can really go places.

My view is that the penny's dropped that if he wants his big move, wants to play at the highest level and win things, the only way he's going to get that is by scoring goals for Everton. Do that and everything else will follow, whether that's with us, or someone else. His tone sounds to me like he thinks that he could even fulfil some of that with us, I think he might have bought into Koeman and Moshiri a bit too. I expect part of it is down to no serious offers coming in from the big boys and he's realised they only will if he consistently puts in performances like he did at the weekend.

So – we have one of the best strikers out there on our books who's focused on doing the best he can in the here and now. After Saturday, I believe this is true and, whether he stays or goes, this can only be good news for the club. I also think, one way or the other, his goals are going to take us into some form of European competition next season. Let's enjoy him while we have him, and spend the money for him wisely should he leave.

How big would the transfer fee be for Kane, Sanchez, Costa and Aguero if they were available? And how big would the transfer fee be if Lukaku finished above them as the Premier League top scorer?

None of us fans knows if any clubs came in for Lukaku in the summer or January. It may well have happened and they got the knockback. I am just happy he is still here.

My guess this is his last season. He's just out- grown us at this particular moment in time. It's a shame but we'll get good money and get in a couple of slightly less good strikers, but on a sustainable basis.

If his form declines to last season's level then he may stay... which would you prefer???

He's 23 and despite most TW posters thinking that's too old to possibly improve, he's only going to get better. I'd like Moshiri, Walsh and Koeman to sit with him at the end of the season and convince him to stay, even if it means blasting our wage structure to pieces.

The lad has an ego on him, but all top strikers do. He also comes across as very intelligent. Hopefully he'll do the right thing!

Lukaku has it in him to be a very good striker. Up to now, at 23, he has proved he is not consistent. Until he changes that, buying clubs will not pay the top money they pay for really great players. However, I think we will make a big profit on what we paid for him.

You can pay big money for strikers who never look like getting past the single figure tally, you could pay for strikers who come in from abroad and never truly settle, the English league being too quick/physical for them.

We are not going to prize Harry Kane off Tottenham or Sergio Aguero from Manchester City, nor will we get Diego Costa from Chelsea.

Only these three strikers can rival Lukaku as an all-round powerhouse striker and we have zero chance of getting them; for what it's worth, I believe Lukaku has overtaken Aguero in the last 6 month's or something.

Selling Lukaku would fill the coffers beyond belief but the value of having a striker that puts the ball in the net is priceless, just ask Sunderland at the opposite end of the table where Jermain Defoe's goals might yet keep them up.

I want him to stay, but I'm realistic and I think if an offer comes in for him from a big European club we won't see him for dust.

I feel Lukaku can only get better with us throughout the rest of the season. Now that we have Schneiderlin and Davies, who can supply him with pinpoint passes from midfield, along with the service he will be getting from Lookman.

If we do break into the top six or achieve Champions League football (not as dreamy as it seemed a few weeks ago!), we are going to attract quality players. My only wish is that Lukaku has an agenda with Everton to help us achieve Champions League football and become a force to be reckoned with.

Bournemouth at home Saturday – "What a player! Best striker we've ever had! World class!!"

Let's keep some perspective on Lukaku, he is not the all-round complete footballer that Sanchez, Aguero, Suarez, and Zlatan are but the top and bottom of it is he scores as many goals! Look at his record!

If he keeps improving the way he undoubtedly has over the last couple of years, he will end up in the top three in the world but he still has a lot of room for improvement!!

We've got to tie him down and build around him; goal machines are priceless in today's game and £28 million seems a snip for his goal return!!

A pity he's at Porto, always seem to be some ownership issues with the players there.

If he holds his form till the end of season, £80 to 100 million would not be turned down and he will get his wish to move on to what he thinks is a bigger club.

With the money we get for this useless waste of space we could get Charlie Austen (£10m), Crouchy (£3.5m) and Shola Ameobi (£1.5m). Three lads who can do everything Rom can't (including the robot dance) and will wear their blue hearts on their sleeves. Get lost, Rom!!!

At the moment, things are looking up, and if we keep on like this I believe he'll be here beyond his existing contract. But, even if he goes at the end of next season, he will no doubt have done a job for us, helping us get places. Which is a purpose of this so-called 'project'. If the latter means anything, then Everton will do their best to keep him beyond next season, with the salary needed to achieve that.

Well done Rom, keep coming deep, so you can run at the defence and give and go instead of going it alone.

Romelu giving Koeman credit for his development.

"We clicked from day one"

We hear a lot of rumours about Koeman and his treatment of the players.
Lovely to hear that straight from the horse's mouth.

Being realistic, things are 'looking up'... yet we're 7th and out of both cups. It will take one hell of a change of fortunes to change us into the sort of club he wants to play for in his prime.

I just don't see him in our shirt beyond his current contract, unless his form dips drastically.

So the question is whether to sell him one or two years before the end of his contract. The answer is probably Yes.

Also he is still very young and still learning; I like many have criticized him but give him the ball inside the box and he usually hits the target. Even Koeman admitted earlier in the season that it will be hard to keep hold of Lukaku. I know I, like many, were not happy with that comment but Koeman understands that a top striker is coveted by the best teams, and although we have made big strides in the last few months we are not yet up with the top 5.

We all hope he might stay another season, but I think he will be off if clubs meet Everton's £75 million asking price.

We are supposed to have money now so let's break our wage structure and give him £150k per week with a £100 million buy-out clause.

We need to build a winning, youthful team with Lukaku at the centre and Ross, Davies, Lookman, Gana, Schneiderlin in support with Seamus as captain, a tough and no-nonsense centre back who can play and possibly a keeper and a goalscoring midfielder/winger. A Leighton Baines replacement as well.

That makes him a very rare, very expensive commodity and its my belief its now the responsibility of the club and coaching staff to harness that ability and help him bring it to the table on a consistent basis. He could probably do with a bit more support from the fans too.

Basically, I've shelved my doubts of his all-round contribution after Saturday; as far as Lukaku's concerned, moving forward, "I'm in".

He's a class striker, and nobody can say otherwise.

His record shuts every mouth that doubts him, or questions him. Fact. Best centre-forward we've had since Sharp by a country mile.

People who say he's inconsistent are wrong. Look at his record since he was 16 across a season, he's scored more than anyone his age in any of the top leagues in the world.

Scored more than Messi, Ronaldo, Suarez, Neymar at his age, same can be said of Fowler, Owen, Shearer etc. I don't get why people berate him or concentrate on the negatives.

Rom is an Everton player, he scores bags of goals, and is a beast to watch the majority of the time – of course he has dips, every player does – he's not a machine.

Remember the way players like Andy Cole used to need 6 chances to score one goal? If you put Rom 'in', he'll score 5 of those.

You nailed it. The best comment on Lukaku... By a country mile. :-)

Bearing in mind that hardly any player stays for his whole career at one club, so we'd better resign ourselves to him leaving at some point, and be glad we will get £80m for him. Enjoy the times.

Bill and Martinez both deserve credit for getting him here, Bill for using his Chelski connections to get the deal over the line and Roberto for convincing Lukaku that we were the best club for his career. After the season he had under Martinez on loan and seeing what Everton was all about, from what he said at the time he was never going to consider joining any other team.

If he goes then he's worth at least double what we paid for him and if he stays then he gives us a realistic chance of building a team that can compete for the top four regularly.

It's fashionable to slag Bill and Roberto off for all the things that are still wrong with the club but fair play to them for getting Rom here on a permanent deal. Sadly it's one of our best achievements as a club in recent times.

He is the Premier League's top scorer, playing in a team still trying to find his feet. I also think he was demoralised last season by the amount of goals we were shipping but now we've started to sort that side of things out he's rediscovered the will to do his bit at the other end.

I repeat – Premier League top scorer...

At the end of the day, aren't most, if not all, people interested in doing what is best for them? Didn't Koeman do the same thing in leaving Southampton? Didn't Moshiri in cashing out his Arsenal interests?

Playing as a lone striker often means running your guts out but he is not built like Andy Johnson. Getting the support he got on Saturday is paramount to scoring regularly.

I still think he needs a partner if he stays at Goodison as Mirallas is not the answer and Bolasie is out.

In the event that he is swayed to move, one hopes Everton already have some ideas as to who they would want to replace him.

I realise that criticising him when he's top of the scorer's table is TW at it's most contrary, but IMHO he lacks the consistency to be mentioned in the same breath as Rat Boy, Lewndoski, etc.

But, that being said, let's be honest: no Champions League next season... no Lukaku. And to quote the Donald, he'll be a uuuuuuge miss.

Based on that, the reason he will stay is I believe we are making good progress towards becoming a very good side, we have a manager with a vision who will bring in more class in the summer; Koeman's team when created fully will play to Lukaku strengths, we can afford to pay him market rate, other top 6 are waning, we will have most iconic stadium in the Premier League for when he is at his peak and finally, by that time, he will adore our club and be a true blue.

Finally, he will also be a future multi-lingual, studious and intelligent manager of ours.

So what is there to fret about?

Yes, he'll have the odd bad individual performance (everyone does) but as a striker, if he's not getting the ball in the areas he wants, then he's going to have a terrible time. A lot has been made on here about his frustrated 'arms in the air' routine but, as Saturday showed, give him the ball where he wants it and he'll run at the opposition and cause them huge problems.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Lukaku is top scorer just as Ross Barkley is starting to finally look like the player we all wanted and Simon Davies has had a run in the side.

But, let's face it, the lad has consistently scored goals but has always been an up-and-down player in terms of his involvement in the game. He is always a bit cool about Everton, just maybe he thinks he is a bit better than the club?

Obviously agitating for move all adds up to not a huge amount of love, so I guess when things are bad they're very bad and vice-versa. I guess we are a bit bi-polar towards him... 'love-hate' is perhaps more accurate.

I guess that's the worry: isolated and uninvolved on Wednesday, and 4 goals Saturday is very typical of him, don't you think?

One thing that is improving slowly but definitely on the up is the lads ability to link the play. For his hat-trick goal; the drop out, lay off and run into the box was heartening to see. Often he does think he can dribble past people from there, shift it and hit it with his left.

As for him moving on, well I still think he won't go anywhere. His game is not complete and I wish I could nail it down but I don't think the top top clubs will fancy him. Just a feeling but I think he suits us so well; if he went elsewhere, it would be a disaster for him.

How nice is it to want the next game to be tomorrow? I'll be positively slavering come Friday night.

We've got 6 very winnable home games on paper (Sunderland, WBA, Hull, Leicester, Burnley and Watford), three tricky away fixtures in Boro, Swansea and West Ham and five shockers in Spurs, LFC, Man Utd, Chelsea and Arsenal - ALL away bar Chelsea.

So - if we can win the first 6, get a couple of wins out of the next two and then do the unthinkable and win (or at least draw) at Anfield, Emirates, WHL, Old Trafford we should be there or there abouts regarding Europe. The first of those clashes is Spurs on Sunday 5th of March - win our games up until then and we could be in for the acid test...

As others have said, his touch and link-up play, are really improving, but he has still got to learn to use his strength more, especially with his back to goal.

To be fair to Lukaku, though, he definitely needs more help because he gets isolated way too much off his team-mates at times, and it had happened again on Saturday until Koeman changed our formation and got us playing higher up the pitch.

In a perfect world, yes... but we all know that just doesn't happen. However, I would like to see the defence become stronger and less like a milk pudding at times.

Baines is past his best as a defender and the central pairing at the moment can be a mess.

We have to do what Spurs did with Harry Kane – give him a new contract and as much money as he wants, and build the team around him. He is irreplaceable present.

Less balls into him more balls over the top, many are aimless but Rom loves the ball in front of him. He applauds most when a team mate tries that kind of thing.

This season is most I've seen him both head a ball and contest a ball, again a result of a more direct style employed by Koeman.

Whilst he should have some sort of 'game with his back to goal I personally cannot see a time were it would flourish.

He is not subtle, is about pace and power with the ball put in front of him.

I guess that's why I don't think a really top club will take him. Italy as an example I would think is too technical, not enough space in behind. Germany might work, but is Dortmund or Munich likely to buy him? Nah. Perhaps France but that has to be a retrograde step for a player who often flaunts his desire to be the best. For Spain see Germany.

Domestically would he move to Arsenal? No, not technical enough, same for Man City, Liverpool a non-starter you'd think, Chelsea is the Romantic choice for him but they like a lone centre-forward, not sure he could do that, not in the Style of Drogba or Costa.

So, realistically... were would he go?

We do see it differently I suppose. However I for one have always had great appreciation for Rom's thinking man's approach to the game. He is entitled to be self-centered, greedy etc. working in a short term career, with the risk of injury at any time.

He deserves all the success he can get, and if Koeman's presence means anything, and we are on the cusp of really good things, he might just stay for another season or two to see how things go.

I think Rom is stupendous at the moment and I am glad we have him, I would, though, like to see him rush to congratulate Tom Davies- not try to claim his first goal for the club! And when he has an assist, I would like to see him thank the colleague.

Humility and respect.

Lukaku at the moment is with us and it is in his best interests to play well and score lots of goals. Unfortunately ever since I have watched Everton we have been a selling club. Lineker said that he did not want to leave. So did Beardsley. Collins did not want away and he went on to be footballer of the year at Leeds. Don Revie said he was his best ever signing. Rooney was sold for big money and it bailed the club out.

Moshiri (I hope) can encourage Lukaku to stay. I would love him to stay and help win us a trophy. This lad is far better than Sharp who was compared to him. Just look at the stats.

He also tops our assists this season so he is not a greedy player. He is a team player and mainly plays up front unsupported. I don't think Kane would score so many goals in our side, neither would Aguero.

He's big he's strong, and he's also explosive at times so, once he learns how to really back-in, and concentrate on both the ball and the defender, I personally think he would then be on his way to being a much more complete player.

We should try our best to keep him because he is excellent and we should all learn to accept players these days are mercenaries and we should not expect him to bleed blue blood, that's our job. Just look at Payet and what he did to the Hammers fans.

We need to chill out about him – especially when he or his Dad start pontificating

For me he only plays when he wants to.

He is not a team player, has too much of a ego to be a top player. Only time will tell. He will go in the summer to fund the next few players Koeman wants.

For some this will be painful, but it's true:-

Rom's not a scouser, he's not even English, but he's played for us in the Premier League for 3+ seasons, his goals were a major factor in us not being somewhere near the bottom of the table – he's shown a sight more loyalty to the club than a certain "Once a Blue, Always a Blue" Wayne Rooney who has also not missed an opportunity to screw every last penny out of his current employers.

Top three strikers in the Premier League. His goal ratio is excellent. Unless we are prepared to pay £50-80 million and £150k-200k a week to replace him. Then he must stay.

More creative players and less isolated up front he is the more goals he will score. Frustrating at times but rather see him in a blue shirt than a red one. Top player!!

"He is not a team player, has too much of a ego to be a top player. "

Even if I believed that statement to be true, it is utterly ridiculous...

Link

Nah, not having that. Stats don't tell the whole story (although Sharp's 'stats' and his status as second-highest goalscorer for Everton after Dixie Dean aren't to be sniffed at) and also a totally different style of player.

Ask any forward who partnered Sharp how good he was and how much thankless work he got through and they'll tell you he was a near-perfect strike partner. Ask any central defender who had to mark him how clever he was in his movement, how he could kill a ball dead with one touch and how he was prepared to battle.

Sharp was also a proven winner who scored vital goals in the very biggest of games. Lukaku hasn't got to that level yet.

[I say all that despite Sharp's displays of cronyism and toeing the club line in later years.]

Rom has an outstanding goalscoring record in a team that has often underperformed. Imagine how many he would bang in if he had the same service that Ageuro or Costa gets!

Rom is obviously enjoying his football with us. We should enjoy him while he's here and, if and when he goes, he'll by incredibly difficult to replace.

Comparing him to Lukaku is a bit like arguing who is the better midfielder; Kanchelskis or Peter Reid – as John Daley points out, it isn't comparing like for like.

You could always compare trophies won for the club, like.

Sharp and Lukaku are like chalk and cheese. But only to someone who never tried Kwik Save's Cheddar.

He consistently plays really well or really badly and that for me is the conundrum.

It is okay to bang 4 in in a game against poor opposition and to score 15+ league goals a season but the truly world class strikers do it consistently against any opposition.

I do see a big improvement in his heading and hold up play this season but he still has a very poor attitude towards the club imo and until we return to our former glories I do not think he will stay.

He has played in a shite team that finished 11th for the last two full seasons and is currently outside the top six this year too. Despite this, in his last 60 league games he has managed to score 34 goals.

This season to date and last season as a whole, he has managed 42 goals in 71 games in all competitions. If he was sold, he would be very difficult to replace with anyone with that sort of recent record in English football as they wouldn't be available or we couldn't afford them even if they were.

Aguero has 47 goals in 70 games in the same period. Harry Kane has 44 goals in 72 games. Diego Costa has 31 goals in 65 games.

The sheer weight of goals provides ample ballast to defend him a geniunely good stiker, a goalscorer. His age and to an extent some small improvements this season in his link up play get him closer to a postive legacy at Everton.

Whilst somemight say appreciate him now cos will miss him when hes gone, i'd adjust that and say ill miss his goals certainly, his antics and moods not so much.

The statistics are interesting as he has almost a 1in2 record but has in most seasons gone several games without scoring, spring last year 9 league games I think, always happy to be corrected. But perhaps map over the teams form over that time and well I cannot see the wood for the trees there. Does one begat the other?

Personally I think he stays because other top top clubs don't see him as the complete player and won't buy at our valuation, north of £60m I guess

As for Sharp, his legacy grows strongly each passing day simply because since we got him from Dumbarton, no one has come close, neither has the team. For me, a poster rightly said he did combine well with any number 9 paired with him and scored plenty.

For Rom to get there with Sharp, and indeed into the pantheon he'd have to do something for us all to get nostalgic about in years to come, 4 at Anfield might do it on April 1st

Sometimes I think that some Evertonians can't quite believe that we have players of this quality in a royal blue jersey. I wonder if it's because folks have become conditioned to mediocrity over the last couple of decades, and automatically think of the best players as being destined for 'bigger' clubs.

My mindset is the opposite of this. I started with Alex Young, on to Alan Ball, et al, and regard the last couple of decades as an aberration. As far as I'm concerned, and despite talk of the 'project' taking several years (what else is Koeman going to say?), we have a squad who can compete at the highest level provided they are managed accordingly. I see it as realistic to win most of our remaining games, whether opponents are above us in the table or not. I see it as realistic to win the league next season.

But not if we let players of the calibre of Lukaku go. He's not irreplaceable by any means (nobody is), but he's very difficult to replace. The club seems to be developing a winning mentality. I think more of us fans also need to do so too.