Former Chelsea coach Eddie Newton says Romelu Lukaku wasn't ready to compete for the first team the first time around.
Lukaku, who returned to Stamford Bridge this summer for £98m, was one of many who was passed on as a young player.
But in this instance Newton feels the Belgian wasn't ready to establish himself as Chelsea's No 9 at that point in his career.
"For Lukaku, he wasn't ready at the time, and I don't care what anyone says," Newton told Goal.
"He just wasn't ready to be the main No 9 up front and carry that platform like Didier [Drogba]. He was always going to be compared to Didier and it wasn't fair to him at that time. It was different situations for different players."
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