Danny Murphy gives surprise Chelsea Premier League title verdict with Romelu Lukaku claim

Tuchel thrilled with goal for Lukaku on second Chelsea debut

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Chelsea are still not among the top two favourites to win the Premier League title this season despite the signing of Romelu Lukaku, claims Danny Murphy. Chelsea excelled in the second half of last season following the appointment of Thomas Tuchel. The Blues upset the odds by winning their second Champions League.

The arrival of Lukaku for a club-record £97.5million earlier this month has made the Blues favourites in many people’s eyes to finish top this season.

However, Murphy is not sure if Lukaku will have quite as much of the impact some feel he will.

He told talkSPORT: “I think you can never know for sure [if one player can decide the title].

“When [Virgil] Van Dijk came, and Alisson too, but mostly Van Dijk came to Liverpool, the general consensus was that he was the missing link. It proved to be the case.

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“What we can’t know at the end of this season is if Chelsea hadn’t signed Lukaku whether they would have been competitive anyway, because we all thought they would be even without him.

“One thing is for sure is that having him there is hugely beneficial for the club and for the other players around him.

“He gives them another option, he gives them strength they didn’t have, he’s a terrific footballer and he’s a goalscorer.”

Murphy believes Chelsea will be up near the top come the end of the season.

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However, he still thinks defending champions Manchester City and 2019/20 winners Liverpool are the top two contenders.

Murphy added: “[Lukaku’s] a great string they’ve added to their bow and it’s a great start for him. He’s a terrific player.

“They’re going to be there, they’ll be there or thereabouts.

“[Lukaku] makes them more competitive and I think it makes them more capable of winning the title with him in it.

“But I still think that Liverpool or City will win it.”

Lukaku scored on his second debut for Chelsea in Sunday’s 2-0 win over Arsenal.

And he hopes his team can push on from their perfect start to the season.

Lukaku told Sky Sports: “At the end of the day, you want to work hard for the team, score and create chances. I have worked on that and this team is very talented.

“They are the European champions and they want to keep building and I want to keep winning.

“We have to keep fighting and keep delivering performances like this.”

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