Why Lukaku didn’t start vs Crystal Palace

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has revealed why Belgium star Romelu Lukaku didn’t start vs Crystal Palace in the FA Cup on Sunday.

Tuchel said Lukaku laid match fitness and opted to start Timo Werner as Chelsea defeated Crystal Palace 2-0 at Wembley Stadium.

Two second-half goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount gave Chelsea the victory against Palace.

Explaining why he did not start Lukaku, Tuchel said during his press conference: “He is not fit enough for the intensity of our game in an FA Cup semi-final.

“It is not easy to come into a game such as this with so much riding on it after a spell out with injury.

“It is just a case of him not having as much minutes recently as the other players, his match fitness is not quite there otherwise, there is a big chance that he would have started today.”

Chelsea will now move on to face Liverpool in the FA Cup final. The Reds had earlier kicked out Man City in the tournament’s semi-finals.