Chelsea is closing in on the signing of Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku, who is set to join the Blues for a second stint after three forgettable years from 2011-2014. Thomas Tuchel's side has prioritized a No. 9 all summer long and shifted their focus to the Belgian after Dortmund made it clear they wouldn't sell Erling Haaland.
With a new frontman coming in, you'd have to think Timo Werner would be slightly worried that his job could be taken away. However, there's a huge possibility Chelsea will opt to play two strikers up top. That being said, the German thinks Lukaku's arrival will help him thrive during his second season in the Premier League, via Sky Sports:
“He's probably one of the top 3 strikers in the world right now, no question. I don't think we need to say too much about him, he's a world-class striker who would benefit any team. I certainly think at Leipzig it always helped having a big striker alongside me, I think that's always good because I'm not the biggest. When you play alone up front, you always have the attention of one or two big defenders. It's a good new weapon to have in our game at Chelsea when you know he can hold the ball up and the fast players around him can set off.”
Lukaku has developed into one of the most complete attackers in world football, forming a deadly partnership across the last two seasons at Inter with Lautaro Martinez. While his most recent stint in the Premier League with Manchester United was poor, he's improved a lot since.
Lukaku's hold-up play will be a huge benefit to Chelsea and could definitely help Werner use his pace to get behind defenders and run onto through balls. The Blues also lack a physically imposing figure in the final third. Lukaku absolutely fits the bill.
It will be interesting to see if Lukaku and Werner can help each other succeed this season at Stamford Bridge.
