5 Things to Know About Romelu Lukaku

5 Things to Know About Romelu Lukaku originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Belgian-born football star Romelu Lukaku is one of the world’s most talented strikers in football, even after a disappointing finish at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The all-time Belgium top goalscorer (68 goals scored in 104 appearances) had a strong 2018 FIFA World Cup where he received the Bronze Boot award in recognition for his performances. But things didn’t go his way in Qatar.

Belgium scored just one goal in three games, getting eliminated from Group F after accumulating four points. Their final game was devastating, with Lukaku missing multiple prime scoring chances before the match ended scoreless.

Here are five interesting facts about Lukaku after his 2022 World Cup appearance:

Lukaku can speak eight different languages

In addition to speaking a Congolese Swahili dialect due to his Congolese roots, Lukaku can also speak fluent French, German, English, Portuguese, Spanish, Flemish (one of Belgium’s official languages) and Italian.

Last year, the Union of European Football Associations published a list that showed the languages that each player speaks so that the media from around the world know who they can interview. Lukaku’s languages couldn’t fit within his box.

Lukaku is signed to Roc Nation Sports

In 2018, Lukaku became the first English Premier League player to sign to Jay-Z’s sports management company, Roc Nation Sports. Lukaku originally signed with the agency when he was playing for Manchester United. Since then, he has reached new heights after moving to Italy to play for Inter Milan in Serie A.

Lukaku scored over 80 EPL goals before the age of 24

On March 18, 2017, Lukaku became the fourth player to score over 80 English Premier League goals before turning 24 years old, following Michael Owen (110), Robbie Fowler (106) and Wayne Rooney (86).

He won 2020-21 Serie A MVP

Last year, Lukaku was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2020-21 Serie A season after scoring a total of 24 goals in 36 league appearances. The striker also provided 11 assists in that campaign. After a rough return season to Chelsea in 2021-22, Lukaku is now back with Inter on loan for the 2022-23 season.

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Lukaku’s father also played on a national football team

Football runs deep in Lukaku’s family. His father, Roger Lukaku, played forward on the Zaire (now recognized by FIFA as DR Congo) national football team. Roger also owns a football club in DR Congo named SC Rojolu.

Zaire was the first Sub-Saharan African team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup and twice won the Africa Cup of Nations.

Romelu’s younger brother, Jordan, also plays professional football.