Simon Jordan battered away Danny Murphy’s claims about Romelu Lukaku’s confidence being at rock bottom.
Jordan and Murphy locked horns on talkSPORT as they discussed the Chelsea striker’s struggles last Saturday.
Lukaku looked like a lost soul for not the first time this season away to Crystal Palace on the weekend.
According to WhoScored.com, the centre-forward only managed seven touches across 90 minutes at Selhurst Park.
All three goalkeepers – Jack Butland replaced Vincente Guaita at half-time – and all but one of the five other substitutes had more touches.
It left another blotch on the already rather stained record of Chelsea’s club-record signing.
Not a very funny Rom-com
After scoring twice at the Club World Cup, some optimistic supporters saw a fresh dawn for the 28-year-old.
However, back on British soil, the problems engulfed any positive feelings directed towards the Belgian international.
He looks a shell of the man who arrived from Inter Milan last summer and who scored four times in his opening five games for the Blues.
Many simply cannot put their finger on the exact reason behind such a stark contrast from a player who promised to provide so much joy.
“Is he playing to his best? No. Why? I think it’s a mixture of things. His confidence is low. I don’t think he’s demanding enough off his teammates,” suggested Murphy about Lukaku’s issues.
“Why would his confidence be low? His last two games in a tournament, he’s scored two goals,” responded Jordan.
“Those particular games you’re talking about are away from pressure,” replied Murphy.
“Okay, but why would his confidence be low?
“His confidence I think was low because two reasons. One, when he did that interview and came back into the firing line, he was a little a bit apprehensive and nervous at the reaction he was going to get.”
Everything has gone down hill since that chat
That interview in question can be circled as a potential crossroads moment for Lukaku.
After the conversation with Sky Italia came to light, the picture changed completely for the attacker.
He had recently returned from a long injury and rediscovered his touch in front of goal, only for that to be completely overridden by the controversial conference with Italian media.
It really has become a conundrum of what to do with the expensive front man.
Remove him from the spotlight for a while and risk draining his confidence even more, or simply set him free after just one campaign?
Fortunately, the tough decision is not ours to make!
Keep up to date with all the latest Chelsea news and opinion by following The Chelsea Chronicle’s Facebook and Twitter accounts
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
