The Chelsea players' reaction to Romelu Lukaku 's successfully converted penalty may have told Thomas Tuchel all he needs to know regarding the striker's future at Stamford Bridge.
Lukaku struck twice in Chelsea's 2-2 draw against Wolves at the weekend. The way he tucked away the penalty, however, with such confidence and composure left his team mates in awe - reflecting his popularity in the dressing room.
And certainly Tuchel will now have to be attentive on how he handles Lukaku's situation after the 28-year-old has endured a difficult season since his return to the west London side. After the entertaining draw against Bruno Lage's side, the Chelsea boss refused to draw his attention to Lukaku as an individual.
"Good performance but for sure not the moment to talk about individual performances. We lost points," he said. But the Belgium's commitment to the club was highly questioned late last year when he said he wanted to make a return to former side Inter Milan.
In an interview with Sky Sport Italia, Lukaku said in December : "Physically I'm fine, even better than before. After two years in Italy, in which I worked a lot at Inter with trainers and nutritionists, I am physically fine.
"But I'm not happy with the situation, this is normal. I think the coach has chosen to play with another module, I just have to not give up and continue to work and be a professional. I am not happy with the situation, but I am a worker and I must not give up."
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But his significance to the side was proved on Saturday, after scoring a brace separated by 138 seconds which meant he became the Blues' outright top scorer in all competitions this campaign, scoring 14 goals.
While also being contracted until the summer of 2026, Tuchel may have to consider any decisions when it comes to the striker in the near future. The Belgian returned to the Blues last year after a seven year absence following his first spell from 2011-2014.
