"Thomas Tuchel must be very careful" - Garth Crooks urges Chelsea boss to be cautious about how he handles 28-year-old star's future at the club

Former Premier League forward Garth Crooks believes Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel needs to deal with Romelu Lukaku's future at the club carefully.

The Belgian has had a tough season at Stamford Bridge since joining from Inter Milan for a club-record fee of £97.5 million last summer. He has scored just seven league goals in 24 appearances this season.

He scored a brace in Chelsea's draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers in their last Premier League outing on Saturday, May 7.

His performance saw him make it into Crooks' Premier League 'Team of the Week'. Sharing his team of the week on the BBC, the former Tottenham Hotspur forward wrote about Lukaku:

"The reaction from his team-mates to Lukaku's successfully converted penalty said all you need to know about his popularity in the dressing room. But it was the way he stuck away his second goal with such confidence and composure that suggests Thomas Tuchel must be very careful with how he handles Lukaku's future at Stamford Bridge."

He added:

"The Chelsea striker has had a difficult season at Chelsea and could return to Italy in a heartbeat. Meanwhile, there is an element of uncertainty surrounding the club at the moment. It looks like Antonio Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta are already off and they would be wise to stem the flow of departures until the new owners get their feet under the table."

It will be interesting to see what happens in the summer with Lukaku. The Belgian perhaps isn't fit for Tuchel's system. However, he is still the club's record signing, which might persuade the Blues to keep him for at least one more season.

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Chelsea dropping perilously close to the top-four race

Tuchel's men have won just one of their last five Premier League matches, a 1-0 win over West Ham United.

They lost to Arsenal and Everton and drew with Manchester United and now Wolves. This has seen their hold on the third spot weaken. They are just one point above fourth-placed Arsenal, and five points clear of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur.

They face Leeds United, Leicester City and Watford in their remaining Premier League matches. While they are winnable on paper, the Blues have failed to instill any confidence based on their recent form. If this dip continues, they might see themselves drop into fifth position.