Thomas Tuchel claims it is 'not time to laugh about' Romelu Lukaku

'It's also not the time to laugh about him'

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has insisted "it is not the time to laugh about" Romelu Lukaku after the striker's recent struggles in front of goal. The Belgian only touched the ball seven times in the Blues' 1-0 win over Crystal Palace at the weekend, the lowest number any player has managed in a 90-minute Premier League match since at least 2003, when that data was first recorded. Lukaku, who re-signed for Chelsea in the summer for £97.5million from Inter Milan, has only scored five Premier League goals in 17 appearances, but has bagged five in other competitions. While the 28-year-old is yet to score a league goal in 2022, he did score twice in the recent FIFA Club World Cup, including the final win over Palmeiras. Tuchel has stated that Chelsea will 'protect' the forward and insisted it is not the time to make 'jokes' about him.

"He's in the spotlight and we'll protect him. Romelu will always be part of the solution," Tuchel said.

"Sometimes it's like this with strikers if they struggle a little bit with self-confidence and to find the space to get involved with a good defensive side.

"Of course it's not what we want and what Romelu wants but it's also not the time to laugh about him and make jokes about him."

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The former Manchester United man is not the first striker to struggle at Stamford Bridge, with Andriy Shevchenko, Fernando Torres and current teammate Timo Werner all finding it difficult following their respective arrivals in London.

Tuchel added: "There is a history of strikers struggling at Chelsea so it may not be the easiest place in the world for strikers.

"In my opinion, Chelsea are a team considered a strong defensive team, a physical team, that has a certain attitude when in competitive football. We demand a lot of our strikers in terms of defending."

Chelsea face-off against Ligue 1 side Lille in the Champions League last-16 on Tuesday.

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