Roberto Martinez Jabs Man United Over Lukaku

By Joshua Walters

Belgium national team manager Roberto Martinez has thrown his support behind Romelu Lukaku and said the Manchester United marksman is one of the best forward line players in the world.

Martinez told the Sunday Times the reason Lukaku has not been of his firing best is that it is seen as normal whenever he scores for Manchester United while he is singled out for blame whenever the team goes blank in a game.

Romelu Lukaku has had a wobbling start to the 2018/19 season leading to the Belgian being given compassionate leave after the sacking of Jose Mourinho last week.

Martinez, who coaches Lukaku at the Belgian national team where the bulky striker has been of his firing best, thought the player performs well for the national team because he is not made the scapegoat on bad days like it is the case at his club.

"There is a negative way of assessing Romelu's performance for Manchester United," he told The Sunday Times.

"When Rom scores, everyone expects him to score, and when he doesn't, he is almost directly the reason United haven't won.”

Lukaku has played sixteen Premier League matches and five games in the Champions League, and whereas he has managed six goals in the league, the Belgian is yet to record a single goal in Europe.

Manchester United won 5-1 against Cardiff on Saturday under their new manager Ole Gunner Solskjaer with Lukaku still enjoying his short leave.

"But Rom is ready for that challenge. He will never hide away. He understands what is expected of him."

"For Belgium, he has shown he's one of the best number nines in the world and I don't understand why he's being treated in a manner which he doesn't deserve.”