This archive report was first published on 2 January 2022.
Chelsea's match against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, January 2, 2022, has taken an interesting turn with the omission of striker Romelu Lukaku from the squad.
The 28-year-old Belgian international has been a subject of interest in recent days, particularly after he expressed his dissatisfaction with his role at the club in an interview with Sky Italy.
Lukaku, who signed for Chelsea from Inter Milan in the close season for a club-record fee of 97.5 million pounds ($131.91 million), told Sky Italy that he was unhappy with manager Thomas Tuchel's system and that he would like to return to Italy at some point in his career.
When asked about Lukaku's comments ahead of the Liverpool game, Tuchel responded, "We don't like it of course. It brings noise that we don't need and it's not helpful... We can take the time to try and understand what is going on... if there is something to discuss it's behind closed doors, for sure."
Lukaku has scored in his last two Premier League appearances, following his return to the side after testing positive for COVID-19. He has netted seven times in 18 games across all competitions this season.
Chelsea are second in the league standings with 42 points from 20 games, a point ahead of third-placed Liverpool who have a game in hand.
