Inter are still not convinced to sign striker Romelu Lukaku again next season when his loan deal from Chelsea expires.

This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews, who report that the Nerazzurri are still waiting to see more from the 29-year-old Belgian international before they pull the trigger on bringing him back next campaign.

There is little doubt that Lukaku has not lived up to expectations on his big return to Inter last summer.

Injuries have played a major role in the Belgian’s subpar form, even when he has been available, but the fact remains that his performances have been nowhere near the standard of his first spell at the club.

Ever since the fall, Inter have been having second thoughts about what had at one point looked like a formality that they would try to bring back Lukaku next season.

With the way that the Belgian’s first season back has gone, there has been little to cause the Nerazzurri to regain their confidence for the future, at least up until the past few weeks.

However, there have been clear signs that Lukaku is starting to finally get back to his best.

The Gazzetta note that the 29-year-old is finally looking close to his physical best in training, something which had not been the case after he initially recovered from his muscle injuries but was still yet to regain match fitness.

Moreover, the Belgian scored the all-important goal in a round of sixteen aggregate win over Porto in the Champions League, whilst his extreme coolness from the penalty spot has been on show in high-pressure moments against Juventus and Benfica.

This has certainly made it much likelier that Lukaku would be brought back next season.

Nevertheless, the Gazzetta report, it is still anything but a foregone conclusion, and the Nerazzurri expect to see more.

The next step for Lukaku could therefore be to regain his spot in the starting eleven in the most important matches, so he can really start to prove that he will be the same player as ever next season.