Romelu Lukaku mastered the art of deception at a young age.
In 2026, Arriving in Belgium The Round of 16 in the World Cup – where they will face the US – seems almost routine. In 2002, it was anything but. Four years after embarrassing France ’98, Belgium exited the group stage unbeaten. Marc Wilmots – admired by the country, and Mbo Mpenza – admired by Lukaku, as he was Belgium’s first black striker at the World Cup and, like Lukaku, had roots in the Congo.
Antwerp school students, therefore, had only one topic to discuss during the summer of ’02 – the World Cup. They dissect Belgium’s performance, marvel at Wilmots’ goal and discuss whether Brazil can be stopped.
There was only one problem. Lukaku hadn’t even seen a minute.
His father may have played in World Cup qualifiers and AFCON for Zaire, but could not even afford two meals a day. So television was a luxury.
His friends do not know this. Lukaku will analyze matches to ensure he is watching the World Cup closely. He was adept at pulling facades.
Football would be his for much of the next quarter century.
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Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku (9) shoots over Senegal’s Moussa Niakhate (19) during the World Cup Round of 32 soccer match between Belgium and Senegal on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Russia 2018 presented a version of Lukaku that will make you believe he is the best striker of this generation. He scored four goals – only Harry Kane scored more. He did what Wilmots’ generation failed to do – beat Brazil in the knockout stages. A stunned Rio Ferdinand said after the match: “He almost shouldn’t be allowed to play with them! It was like a 16-year-old playing against 11-year-olds.”
But Qatar 2022 presented another version of Lukaku – one that would force you to believe, as Ferdinand says, he shouldn’t be allowed to play. Not because he was very good, but because he was terrible. Like the match against Croatia in Qatar in 2022. In their first group stage exit since 1998, Roberto Martinez brought on Lukaku to score. He had four chances – what older generation writers would call ‘gilt-edged’ – and generated 1.74 xG. All four were wasted. A new Urban Dictionary entry arrived:
Lukaku: Losing something under your control; Mishandling due to lack of ability and/or concentration.
Controversy followed him to America.
His inclusion in the Belgian team seemed impossible. A hamstring injury and continued fitness issues limited Lukaku to just 64 minutes for Napoli throughout the Italian season. Prior to the tournament, coach Rudy Garcia faced criticism for only selecting him.
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Lukaku answered in 23 seconds. It was introduced when Belgium were trailing by a goal against Egypt, Lukaku putting enough pressure on defender Mohamed Hani to force the ball into his own net.
Cameo gave him a start against Iran. And then, inevitably, the dilemma struck again. Lukaku had just 24 touches – fewer than every Belgian starter, including goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. His only shot generated 0.03 xG. He drifted through the match almost unnoticed.
Garcia had no choice but to drop him against New Zealand. But when he was introduced in the 85th minute, he immediately became Belgium’s most dominant presence. Lukaku scored once in nine minutes and Alexis Selmaekers scored the second.
Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, left, tries to score against Senegal during their World Cup Round of 32 soccer match Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Maddy Grassi)
Garcia accepted that unpredictability against Senegal and left Lukaku back on the bench. It worked. Belgium came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 and Lukaku hit back with an 86th-minute strike to reduce the deficit.
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Lukaku’s career has been marred by moments he will never look back on. What he will do, however, is his statistics – the fifth-highest goal-scorer in men’s international football (92), and a goals/match ratio (0.71) that eclipses some of the world’s best scorers, including Cristiano Ronaldo (0.63), Lionel Messi (0.61), Neyby 160 and Neyapp. (0.61).
This World Cup has also revealed another side of him – his sincerity. Asked why he let Youri Tielemans take a 125th-minute penalty against Senegal, he could have produced an answer tailored for optics and PR. Instead, he admitted: “I am not mentally prepared for such difficult and decisive moments.” Asked if he was content with bit-part roles, given his stature, he admitted: “If you look at my season and how it went, I would never have gone to the World Cup. So, I’m happy to be here.”
Throughout his international career, Belgium have lived with two versions of Romelu Lukaku and the public has responded differently to each. When at his best, he is Belgium’s very own Romelu. At his worst, he is Lukaku Bolingoli of Congolese descent. With the exception of Lukaku, a bit like how the unassuming Steve becomes Steven Peter Devereux Smith when he scores a century.
Against the United States, Rudy Garcia and Belgium are left with the same question everyone has asked for years: Which Romelu Lukaku will come next?