Romelu Lukaku pleading Inter Milan to restart talks with Chelsea as Juventus move falls through - Reports
Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku has had a frustrating summer so far. Returning to Stamford Bridge after a season long at Inter Milan, Lukaku had made it clear that he was keen to move on from life in London.
The player had reportedly also made it a point to express that his personal preference was to return to Inter, this time on a permanent deal. Chelsea were in talks with the Serie A side over a potential sale, when Inter's domestic rivals Juventus reportedly entered the fray.
The Old Lady weighed up their options of signing Lukaku, potentially as a replacement for Dusan Vlahovic (who has been the subject of transfer interest from various clubs). Lukaku's agent reportedly encouraged chats with Juventus while Inter were still negotiating a fee with Chelsea.
Upon learning about Lukaku's interest in Juventus, Inter were reportedly furious with the player and backed away from the deal. Instead they shifted their focus to Folarin Balogun.
Juventus have now backed away from the deal as well, leaving Lukaku as good as locked up at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have excluded him from their pre-season squad that traveled to the United States, Juventus have walked away and Inter are furious with him.
In such circumstances, new reports (as per La Gazzetta dello Sport) are now claiming that the Belgian striker is begging Inter Milan to resign him, this time on a permanent deal.
Lukaku's career merry-go-round continues
Lukaku has spent his time in Europe across several clubs. He was intially signed by Chelsea as a teenager in 2011. After failing to land a first-team spot due to the high levels of competition, he was sent out on several different loan spells.
Everton finally signed him on a permanent deal in 2014 for a fee worth £28 million. He continued to perform well for the Toffees, registering a total of 87 goals and 29 assists in 166 games for the Merseyside outfit.
It led to Manchester United signing him for a mammoth fee of £90m (including add-ons) in 2017. He largely failed to create an impact at the club, returning with 42 goals and 13 assists in 96 games.
United then sold him to Inter Milan in 2019, who still paid €80 million for the player. Lukaku returned to his best under Antonio Conte in the Serie A, registering 64 goals and 16 assists in 95 games across two seasons.
Chelsea, impressed by Lukaku's displays, broke the bank by signing him for a then club-record fee of £97.5m back in 2021. He failed to make an impact, scoring 15 goals in 44 games.
More importantly, in an interview with Sky Italia a few months after joining Chelsea, Lukaku expressed his desire to play for other clubs instead of the Blues. The relationship never got better and the Belgian forward left on a season-long loan in the very next campaign. He has now returned to Stamford Bridge and finds himself stranded with no clarity on his immediate future.