Chelsea's Romelu Lukaku blames intense media pressure for England’s early exit

Romelu Lukaku in action for Belgium during the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku has said that he believes the pressure placed on England was, in part, responsible for the nation’s early exit from the World Cup, reports the Independent.

The Chelsea striker, who was on loan at Everton last season, said that he believe the media scrutiny placed upon the players is far too “intense” and is difficult to cope with. Lukaku is unsettled at Chelsea.

Lukaku missed England’s 2-1 defeat in Sao Paulo as he was asleep. He has said that he will text Everton teammates Ross Barkley and Leighton Baines to offer his commiserations in the near future.

Lukaku said: “I think there is a lot of pressure on the players. At the end of the season you saw in the newspapers the pressure about the World Cup. People were talking more about the World Cup than the end of the season in the Premier League, which was really intense.

“So I think there was maybe a lot of pressure on the players and you could see sometimes they were a bit scared as they didn’t play with their normal habits. But you don’t have to stress, England has a lot of potential, a lot of young players who will become world-class players and there are experienced players that can always bring something into the team.

“I was asleep. I was tired. I woke up and saw the result and was disappointed.

“I will text Ross [Barkley] and [Leighton] Bainesy later on.”

Belgium could qualify for the round of 16 by beating Russia this weekend. Questions exist over the fitness of captain Vincent Kompany, but he will probably play despite an injury scare. Lukaku will be hoping to play better than he did against Algeria. He was substituted off in the second half, with Belgium turning to Marouane Fellaini to inspire a turnaround, with his brilliant second half display winning them the game.