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Football London
Football London
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Bobby Vincent & Jake Stokes

Thomas Tuchel and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink proven right on Romelu Lukaku after Chelsea v Al Hilal

Both Thomas Tuchel and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink have been proven right with their verdicts on Romelu Lukaku.

The 28-year-old striker, who cost Chelsea nearly £100million in the last summer transfer window, came into Wednesday evening's FIFA Club World Cup semi-final with Al Hilal without a goal in five successive matches.

However, Lukaku picked up a much-needed, and potentially confidence-boosting, goal in the first-half of the match. After a cross in from the right-hand side, the ball rather fortuitously fell to Lukaku, who smashed the ball into the net from inside the six-yard box.

Speaking before the match, during E4's pre-game coverage, former Chelsea striker Hasselbaink predicted Lukaku to get back on the scoresheet again, sooner rather than later.

Hasselbaink was proven right with his comments, saying: "It is a difficult time for Chelsea scoring goals at the moment - it happens. It happens to all big teams.

"Eventually I think Lukaku will come good because wherever he has been he has scored goals. I think his fitness, his goals - sometimes for a striker you just need one or two goals to go in and off you go.

"I think he is waiting for that moment. I think things behind the scenes we all know about hasn’t helped and that has put a little more pressure on him. He’s getting out of that.

Romelu Lukaku of Chelsea celebrates after scoring (Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

"I still think that he hasn’t been as fit as he was at Inter. If he can get to that stage then I think he will start scoring goals again. Look, it’s also to his teammates to provide him opportunities and I don’t think that has happened as much as we would like."

Meanwhile, speaking last month, Chelsea boss Tuchel backed the club's record signing to have a "huge impact" in his second spell at Stamford Bridge.

He said: "We will not reinvent his style or the player. He can simply be Romelu and then we are all fine and he will score because this is what he always does. Nothing helps more than goals with strikers.

"There is no talk, no video that can build up the same trust, the same feeling as a goal. It is not important if it is a beautiful goal or just a normal one, they need to put the ball over the line, nothing helps more than that.

"I have no doubt he is in the shape to help us at the moment. Once he adapts to the physical style of the league, there is no doubt he will score and have a huge impact."

Tuchel will be hoping Lukaku's goal against Al Hilal will give him some confidence and he can finally kick on in a Chelsea shirt.

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