Everton boss Ronald Koeman has been talking up Toffees striker Romelu Lukaku
Everton have experienced a horrible week or so as a club. Last Saturday they were trounced 5-0 by a rampant Chelsea.
Republic of Ireland boss Roy Keane was the next to put the boot in a massive rant against the Toffees in midweek.
However, to round it off Toffees boss Ronald Koeman decided to insult his employers. Basically the Dutch boss stated that star striker Romelu Lukaku was too good for Everton.
The boss has angered some Toffees fans immensely with his comments.
Koeman scores an own goal
Talking about Lukaku to Belgian publication HLN Koeman said: “His potential is greater and higher than Everton as a final destination,”
“If Romelu was to play at Everton until the end of his career I know he has left something behind,”
“I gave him confidence and he has himself recognised that it was good for his development to play another year at Everton. What after this season comes, no-one knows.”
Koeman is nothing if not honest. However, that interview suggests that he does believe that Everton are going to get back to competing with the best teams. Koeman was brought in to wake the sleeping giant.
At the moment all he has done is poke it slightly and stolen a whole lot of money from its wallet as his salary.
We all know Lukaku wants to move on
Everton fans know that Romelu Lukaku is highly ambitious. He wants to play in the Champions League and his agent wants him to get a big move to line his pockets. Fair enough it is business. Football is a business.
Lukaku is a very saleable asset. Maybe Koeman is attempting to massage the striker’s ego by talking about him like he has done. Maybe the Dutchman is trying to up his price for the summer transfer window.
Lukaku’s ambition is understandable he wants to be playing in the Champions League among the elite players. There is always the feeling that the young striker enjoys being the hero, though. He enjoys the status and needs to feel like he is important.
He gets the hero status at Everton. However, the constant interviews about wanting to move over the last few years have not helped his standing with the Blues fans. If he is sold in the summer for a mega fee the Everton fans will not be devastated.
The 23-year-old’s goals will be missed. It will be hard for the Toffees to sign a striker who will as prolific as Lukaku. However, Everton fans will not miss the whole circus that surrounds Lukaku.
Everton are highly ambitious
Everton are highly ambitious as a club since the arrival of new majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri earlier this year. I have to admit I had my doubts about the new owner following the club breaking even on transfers, rather than spending big this summer.
A recent interview with Mr Moshiri will have been reassuring for Evertonian’s, though. He talked openly and honestly about the summer transfers, clearing the debts and a prospective new stadium among other things. The interview suggested he has big plans for the Merseyside club.
Bringing in Ronald Koeman as boss to revitalise the team was one of his first steps in attempting to resurrect the Toffees. Moshiri has talked Koeman up, but there is a sense that he is not Bill Kenwright.
He will not let things drag on if they do not go the team’s way in the future. Looking at the statement Koeman made about Lukaku. He is either a genius for driving up Lukaku’s price or simply does not understand that Everton are looking to get back to the top in the future.
Everton look unlikely to make the top four this season and are odds of 16/1 to finish in the Champions League spots. Obviously the Toffees do not seem like a good bet to be competing with the big teams in the near future. They have spent a lot of time in mediocrity in recent years.
Mr Moshiri seems determined to improve the situation at the club. It seems he will not let anything get in the way of the club moving forward. Koeman still has a lot of work to do to improve things on the pitch.
The Dutchman may now have a job on his hands to keep the fans on side if many more results go against the team.
What do you think of Koeman stating that Lukaku will never fulfil his potential at Everton?
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