Jamie Carragher has revealed he has always considered Romelu Lukaku to be a level below elite strikers like Harry Kane.
Many have drawn comparisons between Kane and Lukaku over the years since both strikers are of a similar age and started out in the Premier League at around the same time.
However, while Kane has been consistent ever since breaking into the Spurs first team, Lukaku has had a few ups and downs in his career so far.
The Chelsea star has not had the impact he would have hoped for since returning to Stamford Bridge in a big-money move from Inter Milan last summer.
There have even been suggestions that Antonio Conte could look to reunite with the Belgian international at Spurs if Kane leaves the North London club (RTL via Sport Witness).
However, other reliable sources, including Fabrizio Romano (Here We Go Podcast – starting at 15:01) have said that Kane is likely to stay put at Tottenham if Conte is still in charge of the club next season.
Carragher has now claimed there have always been question marks over comparing Lukaku to elite strikers like Kane, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema.
The former Liverpool defender told CBS Sports on Paramount+ (06/04/22 at 10:15 pm) about the Chelsea star: “I think he is just below the elite. I have always felt that. I always feel that whenever we have spoken about Lukaku, there is always a ‘but’.
“Even his record in the Premier League, even though he scored a lot of goals. If you look at the teams, it was never against the biggest teams. Very good player.
“When you are talking about Benzema, Harry Kane or Lewandowski. For me, he has just been a little bit below that level.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Lukaku can be unplayable on his day and he certainly possesses the attributes to thrive in the right system. However, technically, Kane has always been miles better as a footballer.
Unlike Lukaku, the Tottenham man would thrive irrespective of what system or tactic the team is employing while the Chelsea man is at his best when he is playing on the shoulder of the defence and has space to run into.