Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku has little prospect of returning to former club Inter after enduring a difficult debut season in the Premier League.
As reported in today’s newspaper edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Belgium international has fallen out of favour with Blues coach Thomas Tuchel after an underwhelming campaign and was left out of Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Lille in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Despite Lukaku being keen to return to Inter after firing the Nerazzurri to the Scudetto last season, any potential move to bring him back would be extremely complicated and not expected to result in success.
Chelsea sporting director Marina Granovskaia is unlikely to offer concessions after the West London club spent €115 million on Lukaku, and a dry loan with no obligations is the option most likely to bring him back, albeit the prospects of this remain slim.
Lukaku would also need to lower his wages considerably, or Inter would require Chelsea to cover some of the costs, as his €12.5m per year is almost double the Nerazzurri’s limit, but the 28-year-old is thought to be more than willing to take a pay cut.
The former Manchester United striker is keen to make the return to the Stadio San Siro after enduring heavy criticism in England, and coach Simone Inzaghi had already made plans to build a team around him prior to his departure.
Meanwhile, it is felt that his former teammates at the San Siro would gladly welcome him back despite frustrations at his departure, and it could convince Lautaro Martinez to remain at the club.
