These are not distant memories. That picture of devotion is only three years old. Yet now, having moved to the Premier League for an initial £11m from Anderlecht, Lukaku sits next to his idol in the changing room, soaking up the knowledge he imparts, and treats Drogba as a team-mate. The Belgian forward, bigger and broader than the 33-year-old he so admires, was presented next to another new signing, Oriol Romeu from Barcelona, at Cobham yet, while the Spaniard will most likely play more first-team games this term, it was the striker who drew the focus. Even Romeu seemed tickled by his club-mate's sheer exhilaration that all this was real.
This was actually the second press conference Lukaku has conducted clad in Chelsea blue. The first was a year ago, albeit a mock event held in the media suite at Stamford Bridge when the youngster, on a three-day field trip with Sint-Guido- Instituut, visited the stadium with teachers and class-mates and sat at the manager's table clad in a Drogba replica shirt pretending to have signed for the club. The stadium tour had been a surprise tagged on to the end of the trip. "I stayed on the pitch while my class-mates went into the dressing rooms and I imagined playing with Drogba," he said. "I told the teacher then that I'd play here one day. I called him the other day to remind him of that, too.
"When you're a true fan of the club, to play for them is incredible. Every day you come in and think: 'Wow, this is really it.' Anderlecht was a big club but I wanted to play with really top players at the highest level and continue to progress every day. I'm training with world-class players here who have won almost everything, so my speed of execution and quality gets better because I've got better players around me. Didier is like a big brother. I told him that. I told him: 'You've got to stay, for me.' He can really prepare me for the big job and he said he wants to stay. This, well, is a dream come true."
He had required some patience during a prolonged period of negotiation this summer before that became a reality. Lukaku began this season back in the Anderlecht first team while the speculation mounted. At Oud-Heverlee Leuven on the opening weekend of the Jupiler league his team won a penalty and, as the striker prepared to take the spot-kick, an opponent shouted at him that Roman Abramovich was in the crowd to see first-hand the forward he was considering as a recruit. "He was joking but I started laughing," Lukaku said. The penalty was duly missed and the visitors were beaten in stoppage time.
The teenager has swapped life as a key player for a squad place in London, though he accepts the bit-part role that initially awaits. "As a youngster, I have to work hard and be ready and earn the respect from players in the squad," he said. "I knew it would be like this. Anyway there is more attention on you in England. Children watch you, so you have to be a role model. I want to be the underdog in the team, someone who works hard in training, comes in on time, and, when the moment comes to play, I want to show the coach that he can counton me."
Romeu, in contrast, may be drafted into the starting line-up rather sooner, given the absence of Michael Essien in central midfield, but it is still eye-catching for a player to leave the reigning European champions for the Premier League runners-up. "This is a great opportunity for me," said the 19-year-old, whose chances at Barcelona would inevitably have been limited. "I thought it would be a wise choice coming here. I'm ready now: I'm motivated and excited by the prospect." The raw talent is clear. Chelsea appear to have purchased a pair hungry to impress.
Guardian
