And Rom thanks Long for contribution to goal
ROMELU Lukaku insists losing at The Hawthorns is not an option as Albion recorded their third successive home victory.
The 19-year-old netted in the 71st minute of the Baggies’ 1-0 triumph over Reading – his second since joining the club on a season-long loan from Chelsea in August.
And the Belgium international, who started his first game for Steve Clarke’s men, believes the desire of his team-mates to reward the supporters is the cornerstone of Albion’s early home joy.
“The head coach has said that we need to always win at home and we cannot lose really,” said Lukaku.
“We have a good defence and a great crowd that buy tickets to watch us play and we need to make them proud, and we need to win all the time.
“We cannot let the home fans down and we are always striving from the first minute of every game to keep up the tempo and provide them with a win.
“We put the other team under pressure and we work for our chances and we hope that we can put them away when they arrive.”
The 6ft3in hitman also reserved high praise for Shane Long who assisted his match-winning strike only six minutes after coming off the bench.
“I had to keep looking for the one moment and I have to praise Shane Long because it was a great run and a good ball to me," Lukaku added.
“I had to do the rest but it is a credit to the team as they gave me the opportunity to put myself in the picture.
“Hopefully I can continue to repay them with goals and hopefully ones that lead to victories as well.
“It was great to get another goal and a win because Reading were tough opponents.
“It was great to get another goal and a win because Reading were tough opponents.
“It was a really good reaction from us after last week and we have to keep on going now.
“We have Liverpool at home in the cup on Wednesday and then we have a big game against Aston Villa.
“Now we have to focus on those games.
“The Premier League is a very good league and we have had a good start - but we need to keep our feet on the ground.”