Belgium coach, Mark van Bommel, has refused to guarantee Romelu Lukaku playing time when the Red Devils face Turkey on Friday.
Lukaku has featured for only seven minutes in Belgium’s first two matches under Van Bommel, coming on late in their 2-0 Nations League victory over Italy in Rome before remaining an unused substitute in Monday’s last-gasp home defeat to France.
The limited involvement of the 33-year-old has raised questions about his international future, despite his status as Belgium’s all-time leading scorer with 93 goals in 133 appearances.
However, Van Bommel said Lukaku remains available for selection and insisted his omission from the starting XI was based on tactical considerations rather than his performance in training.
“It is absolutely not the case that Romelu cannot come on or start. Quite the opposite,” Van Bommel told a press conference on Thursday ahead of the match in Liege.
“It depends on what we think we need in a particular phase or situation. He has certain qualities, but I felt that in that match we were playing a little further away from goal, which meant we could use pace. The only disadvantage is that he hasn’t played much for Fenerbahce.”
Lukaku has struggled for regular club football recently following an injury and a disagreement with Napoli. Since joining Fenerbahce, he has started just one game and made seven substitute appearances.
“You have to take that into account,” Van Bommel said.
“I also explained to him that I chose pace, not because he is doing badly, because he is training well. But it’s not the case that you play based on good training sessions, or vice versa. But you don’t need to read anything major into it.
“As a player, you always want to play. We have 24 outfield players, which is more than usual. Don’t worry about it. Romelu has experienced everything. He hasn’t always played at his clubs and has sometimes had to fight for his place. No worries,” the coach repeated.
Meanwhile, Van Bommel said Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia is unlikely to start against Turkey as Belgium manage the workload of the 22-year-old, who impressed on his first international start against France.
“Romeo came on against Italy and played 85 minutes against France. He did a fantastic job,” said Van Bommel.
“You can already assume that I won’t start him. Chelsea are also being cautious with him, and so are we. We want to make the most of his qualities.”
