Could Romelu Lukaku Be Jose Mourinho's Didier Drogba at Chelsea Next Season?

Not in recent memory has a player cost so much but played so little for his club. The situation with Romelu Lukaku was that as a hugely talented and ambitious forward, all he has wanted to do is play for Chelsea.

Limited to just 12 appearances after an £18 million move in 2011, Lukaku may have been more hoepful about his chances in his second season after adapting to English football.

But in his way stood two of the world's best strikers: Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba, as well as Daniel Sturridge. And with the Blues playing with just one striker up front, the chances of playing time looking to be getting slimmer by the day.

Opportunities for Lukaku looked limited, until along came several Premier League clubs with loan offers for the Belgian international (BBC), who had certainly identified the talent that could be available. Among the clubs interested was West Brom, managed by former Chelsea coach Steve Clarke.

Clarke used his links with his former club to get at the front of the queue and managed to pull off a superb coup, bringing Lukaku to the Hawthorns until the end of the 2012-13 season. 

As expected, the decision to sign the 20-year-old was inspired, with the powerful forward impressing on his debut with the West Midlands side, coming on from the bench to score in a convincing victory over Liverpool.

And from there, it was clear that West Brom would have one of the stars of the season among their ranks. Lukaku looked sharp and used his power to his advantage as he took the Premier League by storm, taking his tally to 14 for the season going into the final day of the season.

But one performance in particular from Lukaku would have caught Jose Mourinho's eye. Reports from ESPN suggest that the Real Madrid boss has signed a four-year deal ahead of returning to Stamford Bridge for a second spell as manager.

And the Portuguese tactician would have been stunned by the former Anderlecht star's impact as West Brom trailed 3-1 at home to Manchester United, which was Sir Alex Ferguson's last ever game in charge.

Lukaku was introduced just after half-time and scored just four minutes later to make it 3-2, before two late strikes secured an unbelievable second-half hat-trick, and therefore helped West Brom secure a 5-5 draw when they were 5-2 down.

An extremely powerful and hard-working forward, Lukaku is a player that Mourinho would be dying to work with. Comparisons to Didier Drobga are inevitable, and rightly so, for Lukaku displays the same kind of passion and desire as the Ivorian veteran. Additionally, his muscular frame allows him to create a frightening presence, putting defenders on edge and using his pace to get past them. 

The distinction between the two remains the lack of loyalty from the youngster, however. After a frustrating first season under Andre Villas-Boas and Roberto Di Matteo, he issued a quit threat, despite being just 19.

Perhaps he has matured and learnt that first-team football will come after hard work on the training ground, but there still remains a question mark over his future.

Nevertheless, should he stick around at Stamford Bridge, Lukaku could experience one of the most significant seasons in his career under the mastermind Mourinho.

In his first few seasons with the club, Drogba struggled to make an impact, and was condemned for play-acting and simulation. Lukaku is fairly professional, and so this is not an issue, but must improve his composure in front of goal if he is to become a top striker in the Premier League.

No doubt, if anyone can get the best out of a player, Mourinho is the man to do it. Although Lukaku already has an abundance of belief and self-confidence, the former Porto coach is intelligent enough to take the arrogance he holds—which in fairness Drogba has always had—and use it to his advantage.

Excellent at holding up the ball as the main striker, the incredibly strong Belgian would be useful if Mourinho deploys either of his favoured 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 formations next season. Lukaku and Eden Hazard form a deadly partnership for Belgium, and one can expect Mourinho to use their chemistry as a weapon, with Lukaku as a dangerous target man feeding balls off to Hazard or Juan Mata.

One aspect about Lukaku's situation that Mourinho will need to curb is his attitude. The 50-year-old is certainly not afraid to drop players if they are out of form, and the Belgian must appreciate he can't play every game.

Equally, with Fernando Torres completing an impressive season in front of goal and the likes of Radamel Falcao linked with a big-money move to the club, per the Daily Mail, there is no guarantee that Lukaku will be a regular in the first team. 

Nevertheless, it looks as if he will be staying in West London next season, and should Mourinho take helm as expected, it could be a match made in heaven.