Lukaku fell in love with Chelsea when he tuned into Match of the Day to watch Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink plundering goals between 2000-04. But it was the arrival of Didier Drogba, who he first idolised when the Ivorian was at Marseille, that really inspired the 18-year-old Belgium striker.
"Three or four years ago I had two jerseys of Didier Drogba, one to sleep in and one to wear in the street when I was playing with my friends," he said. "I had a poster above my bed of Didier and a poster on my right side of Nicolas Anelka."
He added: "I always wore the same boots as Didier. They were Nike, but when I signed my contract with Adidas I changed!
"I'd watch Chelsea train on Chelsea TV. No-one else would do that. People called me crazy, my mum called me crazy.
"I said it was normal, I want to know what it's like there so that I'm ready when I go there. I was a true crazy.
"When you are a true fan of a team and you can play for them, it's the best thing in the world. But you must also be focused - I'm not a fan anymore, I'm a player."
Lukaku visited Stamford Bridge in 2009 during a school field trip to London while being filmed for a television documentary.
When at the ground he said: "What a stadium. If one day in my life I will cry, it will be the day I play here. I love Chelsea."
Two years later he has fulfilled his ambition by joining for the Barclays Premier League runners-up.
Source: PA
Source: PA