LISBON (Reuters) - Inter Milan scorer Romelu Lukaku said he understood the reasons for being left out of the starting lineup for Tuesday’s 2-0 Champions League win over Benfica but was delighted to contribute off the bench.
The Belgian striker has struggled with injury and form this season and saw the 37-year-old Edin Dzeko preferred to him to lead Inter’s attack for the quarter-final, first leg tie at Lisbon’s Estadio da Luz.
"Yes, yes, I understand the reasons because of my previous performances but I just have to look ahead and try to help the team as much as possible,” Lukaku told reporters. Lukaku, 29, said he had concentrated hard on picking his spot for the penalty kick, cutting out the noise in the cavernous stadium.
“We played an intelligent game. We also had other opportunities to score three or four goals but against a team like this a 2-0 win is a good result. Now we have to try to do well in the league too, which is important," he said.
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