London: Tipped as the next Didier Drogba, Chelsea new boy Romelu Lukaku is flattered to be compared to the powerhouse striker with whom he bears a striking resemblance in stature and playing style.
Drafted into Chelsea's burgeoning squad from Belgian club Anderlecht this month for a fee media reports said was in the region of £18 million (Dh108 million), the 18-year-old is now learning all he can from Drogba.
With his frame and swift turn of pace, the young Belgian has invited obvious comparisons with a player many pundits said he was brought in to replace.
But Lukaku is now taking tips from twice African Footballer of the Year Drogba. "To be compared with Didier is a very big honour to me," Lukaku told reporters on Tuesday as he was introduced along with fellow close-season recruit Oriol Romeu.
"Every time I spend time with him we talk and I sit next to him in the dressing room. I listen all the time because he gives advice and, also with Nico [Anelka] and Fernando [Torres] it is the same, so I am very happy to have world-class strikers around me."
"I am not here to replace Didier, just to play for Chelsea, and I hope he will stay as long as possible so I can play with him and continue learning from him. He is a world-class striker," Lukaku added.
"When we did some finishing exercises after training he said to focus as long as possible when you hit the ball, until the last minute. [These are] very small things but very efficient."
