Manchester City’s rumoured interest in Inter striker Romelu Lukaku is real, a report in the Italian media confirmed tonight.
The Nerazzurri’s talisman was reported by the British media recently to be one of the players on Pep Guardiola’s wish list to replace Sergio Aguero, whose contract expires this summer.
FcInterNews.it confirmed City had identified Lukaku as a potential target, albeit the 27-year-old is second on their list after Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland.
However, they also assured that the Belgian was extremely happy at Inter and that neither him nor the club were even remotely considering a departure.
Inter would apparently already have arranged a contract extension with Lukaku had the COVID-19 pandemic not damaged the Nerazzurri’s finances so significantly.
Antonio Conte is also on great terms with the former Manchester United forward and sees Lukaku as completely indispensable to his plans for the team.
FCIN said Lukaku was very happy with life in Milan, where he likes the city and feels important at Inter like he never has done before in his career.
However, they warned Inter’s ongoing corporate issues could change the scenario and force both parties to contemplate a move.
Should owners Suning fail to secure the club’s long-term economic stability in the coming weeks, it cannot be excluded that Inter will need to raise funds by selling a key player or two at the end of the season.
The report said it would be ‘difficult’ in that instance to ignore interest from Europe’s top clubs, City most notably.
In any case, Lukaku only has Inter in his head at the moment and should be able to continue his adventure at San Siro, barring economic disasters in the next few months.
The Belgium striker has scored 54 goals in 78 appearances since his arrival from United in the summer of 2019 and will be hoping to add more to his tally when Conte’s side welcome Lazio to San Siro on Sunday.
