Implications of Romelu Lukaku's Everton Move

Perhaps no sooner that the whistle blew to end Everton's season in May, one of the biggest questions Everton fans had was one of the possibility of clinching loanee Romelu Lukaku on a permanent deal from Chelsea. After all, his goals and sheer presence had so much to do with Everton staying in the race for fourth place with such longevity, and one could have scarcely imagined Everton duplicating such a feat in the upcoming season without his services.

The double-edged sword of Lukaku's phenomenal season on Merseyside was that it both led to Everton exceeding many expectations in Roberto Martinez's first season at the helm and, accordingly, drove up his transfer value in Chelsea's eyes. With his valuation on the market now inflated, doubts were unquestionably present about Everton's financial ability to bring him back to Goodison Park.



As we know now, however, Everton has indeed shelled out the £28 million price tag that Chelsea placed upon him. Such a sum paid is hardly congruent with the spendthrift ways that we have largely come to know from Everton over the years, and on a larger scale, is as much of a ringing endorsement in the club's belief that Roberto Martinez can take them to even higher places as it is a representation of what Lukaku means to Everton's ambitions.

As seen last season, Lukaku truly is the very hub around which the Everton machine functions. Indeed, we've become quite accustomed to Martinez's sides, whether Wigan or Everton, playing some very incisive and attractive soccer more times than not, but even in the midst of such a system, there is certainly room for a battering ram-type striker towards whom Everton's creative influences can focus their gaze. One only needs to reflect back upon the stretch of last season in which Lukaku was injured and replaced in his central capacity by the likes of Steven Naismith and Lacina Traore; Everton's attack struggled to find its once potent identity.

On the other side of the Lukaku transfer equation is, of course, Chelsea. Jose Mourinho recently criticized Lukaku's attitude and, feeling buoyed by the summer capture of Diego Costa, deemed him surplus to requirements. The financial windfall garnered from his sale doesn't hurt the transfer coffers either.

For Chelsea, the debate revolves around if this sale was a good idea or not. Diego Costa was impeccable last season at Atletico Madrid, but as we've seen in the past, the adjustment to life in the Premier League can be a tough one for even world-class players. Should Costa falter or fall victim to injury over the course of a long domestic and European campaign, the responsibility of leading the line would fall to an aging Didier Drogba or a muted Fernando Torres. If the worst comes into being, having a highly productive alternative would be a luxury, but it is a luxury that is no longer a reality.

For now, all we can do is wait to see if this calculated gamble to sell Lukaku proves to be a winning one or a disaster for Jose Mourinho and Chelsea. Regardless of how this move affects Chelsea's fortunes this season, it has certainly given Everton fans every reason to dream.