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Former West Ham United player Matt Upson has lauded Belgian international Romelu Lukaku for his performance in Chelsea's 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.
Chelsea won the two-legged clash with an aggregate of 3-0 and have qualified for the finals clash in February. Upson believes that the strength and power of the 28-year-old forward allowed him to 'bully the players' on the pitch.
Romelu Lukaku was handed another start by manager Thomas Tuchel and the Belgian made sure to leave an impression on the team's performance. Antonio Rudiger scored the only goal but Matt Upson was impressed by Lukaku's performance. Upson went on to claim that Lukaku is ahead of Spurs defender Ben Davies because of his weight, power and strength.
The BBC Football Pundit said during the EPL Cup tie:
Lukaku's weight, power and strength and pace got him that yard ahead of Davies. It is his asset, the sort of play you are used to seeing from him. He is able to bully players.
Romelu Lukaku had earlier criticized Thomas Tuchel for his tactics at Stamford Bridge and expressed his displeasure at not getting enough support from the German manager. Lukaku left Inter Milan in August last year to make a comeback at Stamford Bridge after agreeing on a humongous £97.5 million deal.
In an explosive interview given to Sky Italia, Lukaku revealed his heartfelt desire to rejoin Inter Milan and said that the adores the time he has spent at the San Siro. The player also promised to return and play for Inter Milan in Serie A 'soon'. Following the controversial interview, Tuchel did not include Lukaku in the squad to face title rivals Liverpool in the Premier League.
However, the issue was soon resolved after Lukaku issued a public apology and discussed his issues with Tuchel. Since then, Lukaku has been a regular player in Tuchel's system.
Chelsea play Manchester City on Sunday and Romelu Lukaku's performance will be crucial for the Blues as they look to trim City's lead in the table.
Chelsea become the first team to enter six consecutive trophy finals
English club Chelsea have unlocked a new record to become the only team to have reached at least one final of a major trophy from the last six consecutive seasons. Chelsea shared this amazing feat on their Twitter handle after beating Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 on aggregate to enter the EFL Cup finals.
The Blues qualified for the FA Cup finals in 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021, League Cup and UEL Finals in 2019, Champions League title in 2021 and the 2022 EFL Cup Final.
