"Chelsea need him to start showing up" - Paul Merson claims 28-year-old star was taught a major lesson in Real Madrid loss

Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku struggled to make an impact after coming on as a substitute in the Blues' 3-1 loss to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday.

Los Blancos striker Karim Benzema stole the highlights with his incredible hat-trick at Stamford Bridge.

Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson believes Benzema taught Lukaku a lesson on the night. He wrote in his column for DailyStar:

"Romelu Lukaku was taught a major lesson by Karim Benzema the other night and Chelsea need him to start showing up. If Chelsea score first in Madrid in the second leg it’s game on in their Champions League quarter-final, even though they are 3-1 down."

Lukaku missed a massive chance to cut Chelsea's deficit to just one goal against Real Madrid on Wednesday. The Belgian found himself unmarked after a Cesar Azpilicueta cross deflected into his path just outside the six-yard box. However, he headed wide from close range.

Merson claims Benzema would've put that to bed if he found himself in such a position. The Englishman also stated that Lukaku isn't doing enough at the moment and urged him to raise his level of performance going forward.

He continued:

"But Lukaku’s miss at the end of the game at Stamford Bridge was a bad one – and if that had been Benzema, he would have scored. It’s as simple as that. Let’s be honest, Lukaku hasn’t performed. He was brought in for a big fee to decide big nights like those and he’s missed a sitter."

Merson added:

"It was as easy as you like, that chance. They are going to need him this season but he’s not showing up. He’s not getting involved. He’s not getting across the pitch to get involved in the play. It needs to change."

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Romelu Lukaku's stats for Chelsea this season

Another frustrating outing for the Belgian striker

Chelsea re-signed Romelu Lukaku in a mega transfer worth £97.5 million last summer. Much was expected from the striker when he returned to Stamford Bridge, but it's quite unfortunate that he hasn't lived to expectations.

So far, Lukaku has made 36 appearances for the Londoners across all competitions this season, recording 12 goals and two assists to his name.

It remains to be seen if he will improve his tally in the last few weeks of the season.