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Thomas Tuchel dropped Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea's matchday squad against Liverpool on Sunday. Blues owner Roman Abramovich's stance over the decision has now been revealed.
Lukaku became the topic of discussion of the football world after his recent interview with Sky Italia was aired. During the interaction, the striker admitted he is not happy with his current situation at Chelsea and even floated the idea of returning to Inter Milan.
The Belgian international's comments were not well received by Chelsea manager Tuchel. The former Borussia Dortmund boss decided to leave Lukaku out of the Blues' squad to face Liverpool at the weekend.
Tuchel's decision to drop Lukaku from the team in a game like Sunday's was bold and one that could have backfired. However, the German tactician has the backing of Chelsea owner Abramovich, according to The Sun.
Abramovich splurged a fee in the region of £100m to sign Lukaku from Inter Milan in the summer. The Russian has often backed his players over managers in the past but has opted to support Tuchel in this case.
Lukaku is said to have returned to training with the rest of his Chelsea teammates after being axed by Tuchel. The player-manager duo also held talks on Monday, according to reports.
There have been suggestions that Lukaku is being urged to apologize for his comments. Tuchel, on the other hand, is considering whether to reinstate the goalscorer in the Chelsea team for their EFL Cup clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
It remains to be seen if Lukaku will return to Chelsea's lineup against Spurs or will have to spend some more time on the sidelines as a consequence of his actions.
Thomas Tuchel consulted Chelsea players before dropping Romelu Lukaku
Thomas Tuchel is said to have consulted five or six Chelsea players before dropping Romelu Lukaku against Liverpool. N'Golo Kanta, Antonio Rudiger, Cesar Azpilicueta and Jorginho were among those the German talked to before taking the decision.
If reports are to be believed, Tuchel appears to have the backing of the Chelsea squad regarding Lukaku's omission from the team. It is now up to Tuchel to decide whether or not to give Lukaku a second chance. It is unclear whether the tactician will demand an apology from the Belgian.
