"Lukaku every time!"- Former Manchester United man makes bold Cristiano Ronaldo claim

Former Manchester United star Garth Crooks has revealed that he would start Chelsea new-boy Romelu Lukaku ahead of Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo everytime.

Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku have returned to their former clubs this summer. They have enjoyed incredible starts to their second spells with Manchester United and Chelsea respectively.

Cristiano Ronaldo is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to ever play football. But Garth Crooks has boldly claimed that he would play Romelu Lukaku ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo as a center forward.

"If I had to make the choice of playing Ronaldo or Lukaku at center forward, there would be no contest. It would be Lukaku every time," Crooks told BBC Sport.

Cristiano Ronaldo enjoyed a scintillating second debut for Manchester United as he scored a brace at Old Trafford against Newcastle United on Saturday. Romelu Lukaku, on the other hand, has scored three goals in three games for Chelsea since completing a £97.5 million move from Inter Milan this summer.

Cristiano Ronaldo beat Romelu Lukaku last season in the goal-scoring charts in Serie A. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner ended the season with 29 league goals whereas Lukaku finished second in the race with 24 goals.

The Belgian, however, managed to lead Inter Milan to the club's first Scudetto in eleven years. Juventus, on the other hand, endured a dismal season under the management of Andrea Pirlo. They ended the season in fourth place in the league table.

Romelu Lukaku is widely considered to be one of the most lethal strikers in the world at the moment. His strength, pace and link-up play are likely to cause nightmares for opposition defenders this season.

Cristiano Ronaldo is approaching the latter stages of his career and is not the fleet-footed winger he once used to be during his first spell with Manchester United. The 36-year-old is a goal machine nonetheless. He will be desperate to lead the Red Devils to their first league title since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013.

✍ Garth Crooks on Romelu Lukaku and CR7 "If I had to make a choice of playing Ronaldo or Lukaku at centre forward there would be no contest."It would be Lukaku every time."(@BBCSport)#Chelsea / #CFC pic.twitter.com/0Ro82rKN2E

— Chelsea Chronicle (@CFCChronicle) September 13, 2021

The addition of Cristiano Ronaldo will help Manchester United close the gap to Chelsea and Manchester City

Manchester United v Newcastle United - Premier League

Manchester City and Chelsea looked a cut above the rest during the opening three weekends of the 2021-22 Premier League. The addition of Cristiano Ronaldo is likely to put Manchester United in the same bracket as Pep Guardiola and Thomas Tuchel's sides.

Cristiano Ronaldo has proven himself to be a serial winner over the years and has had an immediate impact on Manchester United's fortunes and their squad. The lack of a top-quality defensive midfielder continues to be an issue for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Morning, Reds 👋Just gonna leave this here 😊👇#MUFC | @Cristiano pic.twitter.com/6UxPdg3aya

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 12, 2021

The Red Devils' strength and depth in attack and defense makes them one of the favorites to win the Premier League title this season.