Will Lukaku put himself in the shop window?
Without a doubt, Romelu Lukaku is one of the best strikers in the Premier League. The Everton frontman scored 18 league goals last season, as well as netting a number of crucial strikes en route to the semi-finals of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium.
Unfortunately, his excellent individual performances have attracted plenty of attention and Lukaku may be keen on a move away from Goodison Park if one of Europe's elite clubs comes knocking. In recent weeks, he has been linked with a return to Chelsea, as well as moves abroad to the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus.
According to various local and national reports, Everton have put an estimated price tag of £65 million on Lukaku's head. At just 23 years old, the Belgium striker is still a raw talent and he could blossom into one of the very best forwards on the planet.
His unique blend of size, speed and strength gives him a distinct advantage over his team-mates and Lukaku is more than capable of playing at the highest level of club football. He's certainly shown enough quality to suggest that he could more than hold his own in a Champions League side.
If truth be told, Everton simply couldn't turn down a bid in the region of £60 million for the 23-year-old. While Lukaku is a sensational footballer, £60 million is a lot of money and Everton's new manager could build a strong core with solid, astute investment using those funds.
The Toffees are in dire need of investment in key areas and the money from Lukaku's sale could benefit Everton in the long run. While former Arsenal shareholder Farhad Moshiri has promised to give the club 'whatever he has', the additional funds would be more than welcomed at Goodison Park. After all, Everton need to self-finance their transfer activity more than most Premier League sides do.
Lukaku will now join up with his Belgian team-mates for a number of international friendlies before heading to the European Championship in France. Marc Wilmots' men are one of the dark horses to succeed this summer and Lukaku, who has scored 12 goals in 43 appearances for the national side, could be crucial to their chances of victory.
The Everton striker has struggled to inspire confidence throughout the last few months but Lukaku will be raring to perform well this summer. If nothing else, he will be self-motivated to prove his worth on the biggest stage of all – especially if the likes of Chelsea, PSG and Juventus are watching his every move.
Belgium will need Lukaku to be at his brilliant best if they are to challenge for glory at Euro 2016. Marc Wilmots' side failed to convince at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil before crashing out to Argentina in the quarter-finals and Belgium will need to be much better if they are to enhance their reputation on the international stage.
At times, Lukaku can look laboured in Belgium's attack and he sometimes cannot keep up with the likes of Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne and Everton team-mate Kevin Mirallas. If Lukaku has one real weakness, it is his worth ethic. The Toffees man has been criticised for his lack of effort at times this season and he will need to put a shift in this summer if he is to make a lasting impression on the competition.
Roberto Martinez is not confident about other teams managing to replicate the success of Leicester City in the 2015-16 season because he thinks this is just an exception.
Leicester City managed to win the league title – only the fifth different team to do so since the inception of the Premier League – on a shoestring budget of just under £ 70 million. They have one of the lowest wage bills in the division and the team was considered as favourites for relegation at the start of the campaign. The arrival of Claudio Ranieri, who did not achieve much success in the English league before, was also not seen as a sign of positivity.
However, the Italian has managed to combine well with an already present coaching staff in order to provide huge changes to the team and build on the success achieved by Nigel Pearson towards the end of 2014-15 season. The title success by Leicester City remains a fairytale story that surprised the world, but it is unlikely to happen again according to Martinez. The Everton manager reckons that the Premier League top four are so strong that it is almost unimaginable that all teams will slip up like they have in this campaign.
Manchester City, United, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea have all been poor this season. "It has been incredible to see them play with that tempo and intensity for 10 months with the same group of players – it has been fantastic to watch. It is a great fairytale story and everyone will congratulate their achievement. Everyone will follow what they can do in the Champions League because it is a phenomenal story. If they can play with the same intensity, tempo and the same goalscoring threat, they should be able to challenge against anyone," said Martinez will congratulating Leicester.
Former England defender Danny Mills says that Roberto Martinez will be able to remain in the job at Everton only if he wins the FA Cup this season.
The club have endured a disappointing league campaign in which they are to finish outside the top 10. This does not read well for the Spaniard, who has been allowed to spend substantial sums of money in recent transfer windows. Players like Romelu Lukaku have arrived for club record fees. They have certainly performed well as individuals, but the team has been let down on a collective front.
Conceding 43 goals in the 32 league matches does not make for a good reading and it has been one of the primary reasons behind Everton being unable to make a wish for European qualification. Everton recently underwent an ownership change with new investment coming in from the Middle East. Often when the new owners, managers are not given enough time to prove their credentials since the new owners will want to bring their own man to the job. At this point, Martinez to perform exceedingly well in order to convince the new owners – even though they have given their backing to the Spaniard – according to Mills.
Everton can win a major trophy for the first time since the 94-95 season by lifting the FA Cup. They are in the semi-finals against Manchester United."In the same way that a Manchester United FA Cup victory would paper over the cracks at the club, Everton winning the trophy would veil some of the problems at Everton.It could be vital to Martinez's relationship with the owners and may be his only salvation in keeping his job into next season. Everton have a great deal of quality in that squad and that makes their underachievement this season harder to bear for the fans," said Martinez.