Roberto Martinez knows he has a gem of a player with on-loan signing Romelu Lukaku.
“He’s got that power, that mentality to get in the right positions. Even when you get there you still have to put your head in where it hurts,” Everton manager Roberto Martínez said. “The young generation sometimes forget the old, strong attributes that you need to be a footballer.”
Martínez knows he has a special talent on his hands. “I’ve worked with him now for the best part of three weeks and he has no weakness. It’s a really exciting feeling to have that in your dressing room,” he said. “The first time I spoke with him I realised he was not a typical centre forward. He’s a thinker; he is a real knowledgeable man.
“He speaks six or seven languages. He is someone who looks at games in a very different way, and is like a manager in the way that he looks at movement. I have been very surprised with that side of him.”
And what about the surprise that Lukaku is not back in the blue shirt of Chelsea, rather than Everton? “Chelsea have got a huge squad and sometimes you have to look at experience and at this stage it is perfect for both clubs,” Martínez said. “Chelsea know that Romelu will be looked-after, allowed to grow, and Chelsea have experienced players who know how to win titles.”