Romelu Lukaku was so uncomfortable playing under former Belgium manager Marc Wilmots that there were times he hoped he wouldn’t be picked to play.
Lukaku became Belgium’s first-choice centre-forward during Wilmots’ four-year tenure in charge of the national team but the 24-year-old has revealed that he wasn’t happy when Wilmots was at the helm.
“I knew I was going to play. The only problem was I also knew he didn’t want to play me,” Lukaku said during an interview with DHNet.
“In that type of situation, you tell yourself ‘f*** off, leave me at home, don’t pick me’.
“You play for your country for pleasure. I never said I didn’t want to play here, but at that time, I didn’t enjoy being a part of it: I didn’t like getting selected.”
Lukaku is currently in Belgium, receiving treatment on an ankle injury picked up in Manchester United’s victory over Arsenal last month.
He is hopeful of coming out on top in the fitness battle in order to give Jose Mourinho his top striking option for the FA Cup final against Chelsea next week but the United manager has admitted that Lukaku may only make the bench.
Then comes the little matter of World Cup preparation for the forward, who is definitely enjoying life more under current Belgium boss Roberto Martinez and his assistant Thierry Henry.
