What Thomas Tuchel told Romelu Lukaku as Chelsea boss considers Leeds United start for striker

Thomas Tuchel hopes that Romelu Lukaku's brace against Wolves can spark the confidence required for the Belgian striker to build upon his peformance for Chelsea.

Lukaku is Chelsea's top scorer this season but with just 14 goals has not set Stamford Bridge alight like many expected when he completed his £97.5 million transfer in August. Until his penalty against Wolves, the former Man United forward had not scored a Premier League goal in 2022.

That was in part down to Kai Havertz securing a starting role, leading the forward line but there was little question that Chelsea played better with the Germany international rather than his teammate. The immediacy and quality of Lukaku's second strike against Jose Sa, seemed to suggest a change in gear for the 28-year-old's form, however, while Tuchel perhaps hinted another start could be in store. Could now be the moment for Lukaku to find his quality?

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"He is more than welcome to show it all the time," said the former Borussia Dortmund coach. "He has been scoring goals since he was six years old. It is in his body and this is what I tell him all the time - to trust your body, trust your brain, trust your instincts.

“You know how to do it, you will never forget how to score but he needs a spark and hopefully this was it and he can continue. It is always a good moment to have you strike in confidence and in shape.

“For many strikers, once they start overthinking things, it’s not good because they should trust their instincts. When they do not get enough minutes they start thinking about their situation and it starts a cycle where it is hard to climb out. In general he is very committed in