Chelsea are reportedly the football betting favourites to sign young Anderlecht striker Romelu Lukaku, the 17-year-old billed as the perfect replacement for Didier Drogba.

Chelsea have been chasing Lukaku for some time along with a host of other top European clubs, and while he did not name names, the player's agent Roger Henrotay revealed the Belgian international was destined for the Premier League, and denied Roma were interested in securing his services.

"I do not know anything about the alleged interest of Roma. It is all speculation as far as I am concerned. I cannot confirm or deny whether the Roma directors have set their sights on Romelu," He told Il Romanista.

“I can confirm that the clubs from the Premier League are sitting in pole position to secure the services of Romelu. It is not true that he has already agreed terms with one squad in particular, though."  He added.

Chelsea’s interest in the striker can be traced back almost two years, and as one of the most sought after youngsters in world football, the Blues can expect their fair share of competition for his signature.

The intense media interest that surrounds him is a testament to just how sought after he is across Europe.

Real Madrid, Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham are just some of the names that have been linked with Lukaku in recent months, but Chelsea look set to win the race for the £20 million man; one question remains, do the club need him?

While the club have spent considerable time and effort attempting to re-energize the playing squad as the core members enter the home straight of their career (although Ray Wilkins insists Terry, Lampard et al are more than fit enough to play on for the foreseeable future) the move for Lukaku is fraught with danger.

The tag of the “new Drogba” is apt. His physical presence is frankly frightening for a man (if you can call the 17 year old that) of his age, and his attributes go way beyond being a bit of muscle up front. Like Drogba his control is exquisite and his shot is fierce. The temptation to suggest he has a good touch for a big man is almost too much.

But it is difficult to see where he fits in. The elephant in the room is obviously Fernando Torres. One of Ancelotti’s failings this season has been his inability to find a way of accommodating his vast array of attacking talent while maintaining a formation that plays to Chelsea’s strengths, and more pertinently, his ability to make Torres and Drogba work together.

Torres is the man football bets back to lead their attacking line-up around for the next five seasons and beyond. With £50 million spent on the Spaniard, whoever is in charge next season will have to focus their attention on making things work around him, and the evidence put forward this season is that he prefers to operate alone, an approach his time at Liverpool  and his work in tandem with Steven Gerrard finding him from midfield backs up.

Depsite the tinkering this season, the 4-3-3 that merges into a 4-5-1 defensively will surely be the formation of choice next season and beyond; it is the system which suits Chelsea best with Ramires, Malouda, Kalou all good performers in wide areas, leaving Torres to operate on his own in central areas while Lampard, Essien or Mikel provide the ammunition from midfield. Drogba has had to take a back seat at times this season, something which could happen on a regular basis next time round despite his performances of late.

With Torres in the side, Chelsea will look to play with essentially a single out and out striker, and with so many options at his disposal, Ancelotti (or anyone else) will struggle to find a place for Lukaku, or justify letting a man of his age lead the line for one of the top clubs in Europe.

With Daniel Sturridge performing well with Bolton and likely to head back to Chelsea for next season as well, not to mention Nicholas Anelka, then there seems little opportunity for Lukaku to get any sort of first team football for some time. One of the main reasons he hasn't left Anderlecht already is his desire to play more football before joining one of the biggest club’s in Europe, and it may serve all parties well to delay the move further.

Of course, at 17, there is plenty of time for him to develop and he will eventually have a team moulded around his abilities. If he were to move to Chelsea this summer then it would be unlikely he would have featured regularly even if Torres hadn’t been signed, and it is hard to argue against having the hottest property in Europe at Stamford Bridge.

But his game still requires work. He is still developing physically (a frightening thought) and he is still developing mentally. Anderlecht can offer his competitive football along with occasional Europa League matches, surely much better for the youngster than sitting on the subs bench. Couple that with the competition he would face at Stamford Bridge for effectively the sole forward spot, and he may be best served to stay put for the time being.

Chelsea must be patient and take their time. They have a player bursting with talent within their grasp and must be careful with what they do next. If he does sign on the dotted line so be it, but they have to aware that talent is precious and can be easily destroyed by a few wrong turns.