the touching confidences of Romelu Lukaku

It can be devilishly effective or terribly frustrating, but it rarely leaves one indifferent. Romelu Lukaku is one of those players who regularly goes through opposite phases in his career. And at the moment, he has found a smile again at the club, where his new collaboration with Antonio Conte at Naples is giving him confidence. On the other hand, he is clearly struggling to raise his head at international level, after two consecutive failures at the 2022 World Cup then at the last Euro 2024.

The rest after this ad

Lukaku, whose speech is rare in Belgium, spoke at length to a podcast, Koolcast of Friends of Sportsto return to the consequences of the post-World Cup on his state of mind. “Against Croatia, I missed four big chances. Afterwards, all my frustration came out. For the first time in 29 years, football really touched me. I never thought it was depression, but I cried every day, for weeks and weeks. Even on vacation. Thierry Henry called me three times a day. I no longer watched football on TV. My mom and the kids were in Milan, but I didn’t have the energy to join them. I had to be alone”he says.

To read
Belgium: Domenico Tedesco is expensive but…

Lukaku ready to skip ahead of 2026 World Cup

It was hardly any more brilliant during the following Euro, when a new cycle had started with Domenico Tedesco. The current coach, particularly criticized, had started his mandate well and succeeded in bringing together team executives like Lukaku, despite a certain initial reluctance. “When Tedesco became a coach and he visited me, I wanted to tell him that I was stopping. But he told me he needed me. I even hesitated again after his first two matches, in Sweden and Germany, but I still said yes. »

The rest after this ad

However, today he is giving himself time to reflect, after having missed the first two gatherings in September and then October. Tedesco says he still counts on him and is able to convince him to come back, but listening to Lukaku, nothing is done. “I hope I can rediscover my passion for the Devils. At the moment, after the Euro, it’s difficult. The next goal in the national team is the World Cup, which is only two years away. It’s a long time. I will only come back if I have a good feeling. In this case, I will return to a leadership role, but you can’t expect me to be happy when we don’t win. In football terms, this group is already very far, but it does not yet have a real winning mentality”he said. It remains to be seen whether those who did the job in his place would accept such an outcome…