Article by Daniel Scorpie – Published Wednesday, December 31, 2025 4:32 p.m. / Updated Wednesday, December 31, 2025 4:54 p.m.
Romelu Lukaku (32 years old), the striker of Napoli, starts 2026 also outside the field of play. Although the Belgian international has recovered from the serious muscle tear suffered just before the start of the season, Antonio Conte has announced that he cannot use him earlier than three weeks!
The Italian champions' coach hoped that, after picking him up in Riyadh for the Super Cup final win against Bologna (he was an unused substitute), he would gradually give Lukaku minutes at the start of the new year.
Antonio Conte lost his favorite striker, Romelu Lukaku, for a few months / Photo: Imago
“Romelu Lukaku is not yet ready. It was hoped that he would be back on the pitch at the beginning of January, but his condition, as explained by Antonio Conte a few days ago (“How many minutes does Lukaku come in? Zero!”), the Belgian is not physically fit to play.
The reason? The injury was serious, and the risk of a relapse is significantespecially considering the impressive constitution of the Belgian, and bringing Lukaku back to a promising physical tone is already a performance,” reports the Sportmediaset agency.
The cited source claims that Romelu has no chance of rejoining Lazio, but he will also miss the next stages, with Verona and Inter. It is the worst news for Antonio Conte, who was pinning his hopes on his presence against the Serie A leader on January 14 in Milan.
Lukaku tore his hamstring on August 18. Luckily, Hojlund replaced him brilliantly: he scored nine goals in the matches!
The recovery period will be extended to around three weeks, if all goes well and if Lukaku manages to train normally and at a steady pace to reach optimal physical condition.
Napoli defeated Fiorentina, score 3-1. Rasmus Hojlund scored on his debut // PHOTO: Getty Images
Asked about when Romelu Lukaku could return to the pitch, sporting director Giovanni Manna said: “A prediction for his return? It would not be fair to say that we have made a plan with Romelu, but we have to understand how his body reacts, even at a certain age.
At the moment, we are preparing our matches as if those who are missing are not on the pitch. Next to return are Gilmour and Anguissa, we hope to have more surprises”.
The Belgian striker suffered a thigh muscle injury during the friendly match against Olympiakos on August 18, and the doctors' verdict was serious: a major tear and 3-4 months out. But Lukaku's recovery is taking longer.
Napoli's luck is that Romelu's absence is compensated excellently by Rasmus Hojlund. The author of the “double” with which Napoli beat Cremonese (2-0), the Danish striker reached 9 goals in 20 matches, in addition to three assists.
