It's sometimes easy to forget that Romelu Lukaku is only 23 years of age, given that the Everton striker has already been knocking in goals in the Premier League for five years, now. And also the fact he's built like a goddamn freight train.
Nevertheless, the £28m man has been finding the back of the net since his prolific loan spell at West Brom as a terrifying 18-year-old and now, five years later, the Toffees hitman is set to emulate Cristiano Ronaldo.
It's safe to say Lukaku has lived up to his early promise. Unlike these 'wonderkids'...
Should Lukaku find the back of the net against Middlesbrough this weekend, he will equal Cristiano Ronaldo's record of scoring 77 Premier League goals by the time he's 24.
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However, even if the Belgian doesn't manage to score against Aitor Karanka's men, he will still have until 13th May to match the Portugal captain's top flight record, which will surely cement him as one of the finest young strikers in Premier League history.
If Lukaku fires another 10 goals in between now and his birthday, he'll also equal Wayne Rooney's record of 86 Premier League efforts by the age of 24. Emulating Robbie Fowler or Michael Owen is probably too big an ask, though.
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An astonishing four goal display during Everton's 6-3 victory over Bournemouth last week significantly helped Lukaku's cause, taking his overall tally for the season to 17 goals in 25 games. The former Anderlecht man already has a pretty remarkable career record, with 136 goals in 303 games.
Despite Lukaku's prolific nature, he has sometimes divided opinions, with several anonymous or lazy displays creeping into his game every now and again. Also, his openness about wanting a return to Chelsea in the past has riled sections of Everton fans. However, at just 23 years of age, it's safe to say the Toffees striker would walk into most sides in the world with his best years still ahead of him.
(H/T 101 Great Goals)
Topics: Everton FC, Premier League, Romelu Lukaku, Cristiano Ronaldo
