Do not read on if you, like myself, are still coping with last week’s announcement that David Silva and Gerard Pique are calling it quits with the Spanish national team. International football, it seems, may soon be suffering another casualty, though perhaps we have a couple years to prepare for this one. Retirement from top level football is as sure a thing as death and taxes, but that still does not make the blow any softer, particularly when it comes from a player still well within their prime.
Belgium star Romelu Lukaku announced today that he is strongly considering retiring from the Belgian national team after Euro 2020. Most recently, the striker netted four goals in Russia as Belgium wowed fans on its way to a third place finish, its best ever result at the tournament. He will be just 27 at the culmination of the 2020 European Championships, making his decision a surprising one.
#BELJPN 2nd half was the best half since #ARG vs #ENG 1998 world cup...
That match gave Owen Beckham Simeone'
This match has too many heroes as well. For me Lukaku KDB Inui Kagawa stand out pic.twitter.com/jnWWZ4FlrR— Shrin (@ShrrinG) July 3, 2018
It's unclear as to the exact reasons for Lukaku’s early departure from international football, but he told sources that he is hopeful for the players coming up behind him who are “skilled” and “have access to better training”. He has been fantastic at the club level for quite some time, becoming the fourth youngest player to net 100 goals in the Premier League.
The sky is the limit for him at Manchester United it seems, as long as he stays fit. Perhaps pressure to perform with the national side could also be a contributing factor. Reaching the semifinals of the World Cup and bowing out to eventual winners France is by no means anything to scoff at, however, the media and others have been relentless with their expectations of this Belgium side in recent years.
Lukaku, who also featured at the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Euros, is considered a key member of the country’s “Golden Generation,” along with the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois. No doubt these players have forever changed Belgium’s footballing legacy and have permanently raised the standard for generations of players to come.
'We're trying to leave a bit of history'
Belgium's Romelu Lukaku says it is now or never for the golden generation.Read https://t.co/D3ow5kJRQp #worldcup #bbcworldcup pic.twitter.com/BG4OlBY1Bg
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 23, 2018
Interestingly, Lukaku is not the only one to raise a few eyebrows with talk of national team retirement at such a young age. Within the same 24-hour period, 27-year-old Nigeria star Victor Moses announced his retirement from the Super Eagles. Moses too cited his excitement in watching the younger generation take the reigns and was explicit about his desire to “focus fully on his club career” with Chelsea.
It's not unheard of for players to step away from the national team and come back à la Lionel Messi. We will just have to wait and see how Lukaku’s international future plays out. Whether he decides to retire from the national team or not come 2020, Romelu Lukaku, already the country’s most prolific scorer, has certainly left his mark.
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