Player Focus: Lukaku Primed to Enjoy Most Prolific Season to Date

Everton’s second goal in their 4-0 thumping of lowly Aston Villa last week was a landmark occasion for one striker. Romelu Lukaku’s first of the game on the half hour mark was his 50th in the Premier League and he would go on to net his second of the match and 51st in England’s top tier a little over 30 minutes later. It’s an impressive achievement for a frontman so young. 

Lukaku became the first Belgian in Premier League history to reach the 50 goal barrier and the fourth youngest to do so. At 22 years of age, there is without question more to come from the Everton striker, who continues to go from strength-to-strength with each passing season. After failing to make his mark following his move to Chelsea, subsequent loan moves to West Brom and Everton - the latter of which was made permanent - enabled him to showcase his goalscoring prowess and potential to become one of the best strikers in the league. 

It goes without saying the Belgium international is beginning to realise that potential. Only Jamie Vardy (13) has netted more Premier League goals this season than Lukaku (9). A further four assists means he has been directly involved in 13 of Everton’s 24 league goals this season, again only Vardy (14) has directly contributed to more in England’s top tier so far. 

Such form has contributed to a WhoScored rating of 7.52, his best in the Premier League and the 12th highest in England’s top division. After a grueling World Cup campaign with Belgium, the young frontman appeared to struggle with the physical demands of another league season following the tournament in 2014/15. Arouna Kone’s serious knee injury sustained last October meant Lukaku was forced to shoulder the attacking burden for the Toffees and, without a proper break from the game, it showed. 

A total of 10 goals and a further 5 assists was hardly an ideal return for a lone striker in Roberto Martinez’s favoured 4-2-3-1 formation. Lukaku, though, is on course to break both figures before the month is even out. His average of 3.2 shots per game is a marginal increase on last season (2.9) and his best since his debut campaign on Merseyside, where he bagged 15 league goals from the same average number of shots per game. 

However, with his goalscoring prowess now back to its best, it’s no shock that Lukaku’s conversion rate this season (21.4%) is his best in his three years at Everton. Given his constant movement off the ball and ability to either link up with those behind him or hang on the shoulder of the last defender, the unpredictability of his approach means he is becoming increasingly difficult to stop. 

A key factor in this, though, has been the consistency of Martinez’s picks of late in the attacking three the Spaniard favours. No fewer than 11 players operated in the offensive triumvirate in the 4-2-3-1 formation last season, with Ross Barkley in particular starting just 10 league games in the number 10 role. This season, however, the number of players used in the three so far sits at seven, though Barkley is the only player to have been used in the number 10 role - starting all 13 league matches to date. 

It’s clearly something that has allowed for Lukaku and Barkley to forge a partnership in the final third, with the latter the Premier League’s eighth highest rated player (7.63). Furthermore, the permanent arrival of Gerard Deulofeu and return to match fitness of Kone has helped Lukaku show his best form. With the former deployed on the right, he has the creative qualities to spot any runs Lukaku makes before laying on a goalscoring opportunity for his teammate. Four of Deulofeu’s five league assists have been for a Lukaku goal. 

Meanwhile, with Kone making late runs into the box and Lukaku able to hold up the ball before playing in the Ivorian, Everton have added another dimension to their attack that wasn’t there previously. All four of Lukaku’s league assists have been for a Kone goal. Only Mesut Ozil to Olivier Giroud (five goals) is a more profitable goalscoring combination than Deulofeu to Lukaku and Lukaku to Kone (four goals). The front four have been able to build up a rapport that is indeed benefitting the club in their pursuit of a return to European competition.

The lack of participation in European tournaments is also part of the reason why Lukaku continues to thrive for the Toffees. As the club’s lead frontman, he’s expected to play his part in every match. As such, he registered a whopping 3511 minutes of league and Europa League action last season, that coming on the back of 179 minutes of World Cup football. While not the greatest amount in Brazil, the travelling and training will have taken its toll given the heat. 

Now handed the chance to fully recharge his batteries between games, and without the pressure to fire in the goals in Europe, Lukaku looks every bit the quality striker once more. When Everton face a Bournemouth side that has conceded more goals (27) than any other team in the Premier League this season, Lukaku has every right to be confident of becoming the second player to break the double-figure barrier in England’s top tier this term on Saturday.

How many goals do you think Romelu Lukaku will score in the Premier League this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below