Liverpool goalkeeper, Alisson Becker said the arrival of Chelsea’s new signing Romelu Lukaku has made the London-based club stronger.
The Brazilian who said this ahead of the Liverpool vs Chelsea clash which is scheduled to kick off at 17:30, on Saturday, August 28, 2021, described Lukaku as an amazing player.
Chelsea paid over £97.5 million to bring Lukaku to the club from Inter Milan earlier in August after the club failed to sign Erling Haaland of Borussia Dortmund due to the asking price of the German club.
Lukaku is not new to the Premier League. He started his journey at Chelsea between 2011 and 2014 and was sold to Everton when he could not establish himself at Stamford Bridge.
He became so good at Everton that Manchester United came for him. His relationship with United went so sour that he had to leave the Premier League club for Inter Milan in 2019.
In Italy, Lukaku became a total beast in terms of scoring goals and assisting his teammates. His effort helped Inter Milan to win the 2020-2021 Italian Serie A title.
When he returned to Chelsea this summer, his first Premier League game was against Arsenal. In the game which ended 2-0 in favor of Chelsea last weekend, Lukaku tormented Gunners’ defense throughout the game. He ended the game with his first goal for Chelsea.
“He’s an amazing player, of course, they became stronger with him,” Alisson Becker told Sky Sports when asked about Lukaku.
“And they were already strong – they won the Champions League without him. He’s an amazing player, I don’t need to tell you about his qualities.
“We need to approach this game with the maximum energy and mindset that we have to get our target, which is the three points.”
Alisson Becker will face Lukaku with the support of Virgil Van Dijk
Unlike Chelsea that made a resounding deal that brought Lukaku to the club this summer, Liverpool did not sign any superstar player so far in this summer transfer window.
However, Liverpool’s goalkeeper, Alisson Becker will face Chelsea on Saturday with the support of the club’s best defender Virgil Van Dijk.
Liverpool struggled without Van Dijk in the second half of the 2020-2021 season due to a prolonged knee injury. Fortunately for the Merseyside club, the Dutch defender is fit enough to battle with Lukaku on Saturday.
Alisson said: “We already have a top team and having Virgil is really important for us.
“He is someone who gives you confidence on the pitch with his presence and his qualities.
“He can give so much for you defensively – and attacking-wise, setting up the moves.
“In the last match [against Burnley] he did a fantastic pass to Harvey [Elliott] for the second goal and he’s an amazing player.”
Chelsea and Liverpool are among the five clubs in the league that won their first two games this season. Hence, any of the two teams that win the Saturday match, would be sitting comfortably at the top of the league table pending the outcome of other league games.
Alisson Becker • Best saves pic.twitter.com/fbMgZO4aKi
— Le_Comps (@LeCompsX) August 25, 2021
