Romelu Lukaku is “NOT scheduled to return to Chelsea tomorrow for pre-season training” as the Belgian striker looks “as he looks to seal a permanent move from Inter Milan”.
Romelu Lukaku looks set to steer clear of featuring in Chelsea’s pre-season Inter Milan will offer £30m to try and bring Romelu Lukaku back to the San Siro Follow Mail Sport on Threads here: https://www.threads.net/@mailsport
Romelu Lukaku’s desire to turn his Inter Milan loan into a permanent one will see him stay away from Chelsea tomorrow.
The Blues had given the Belgian forward July 12 as a return date for him to join new manager Mauricio Pochettino.
But the Telegraph reports that Lukaku has no interest in returning to Chelsea and will instead wait to see if Inter can successfully negotiate a deal to keep him, something they have so far been unable to do with Chelsea looking for a fee of around 40 million pounds.
Lukaku posted an Instagram story of training alone with the caption ‘last night’ but it appeared he was nowhere near Chelsea’s Cobham training ground.
Pochettino questioned whether Lukaku, who rejoined Chelsea in 2021, ironically from Inter, in a club-record £97.5m move, had a future at the club if he trained.
Romelu Lukaku’s desire to return to Inter Milan will see him reject a return from Chelsea
The Belgian (left) has been working on his fitness but is said to be out of Chelsea’s core group working under new manager Mauricio Pochettino (right).
He said: “I think the personal situations all parties know what we think. In this case, he must return on the 12th or 13th [July] to be part of the squad and start the preseason.
“When the player arrives, the first thing they do is come to my office to see me and say hello. That’s what I expect if he’s still a Chelsea player.
Lukaku has routinely found life difficult in west London, most recently falling by the wayside by failing to adapt to Thomas Tuchel’s style.
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He managed just eight Premier League goals and his relationship with fans soured when he gave an interview to Sky Italia revealing his desire to return to Inter.
Lukaku would eventually return to the San Siro, scoring 14 goals in 37 games last season.
After having a bid rejected this summer, Inter are now ready to make an improved offer of around £30m, plus add-ons.
Chelsea want to recoup as much as possible of the £97.5m they paid for the Belgian in 2021.
Pochettino wants to stick with his players as he looks to turn around Chelsea’s fortunes
The Italians had rejected a previous offer of around £23m and Chelsea were asking for £40m. Lukaku is keen to return to Inter instead of considering joining Juventus or Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal.
Inter met with Lukaku’s lawyer late last week and are keen on a return, but Chelsea want to recoup a bigger chunk of the £97.5m they paid to buy the striker in 2021.
The Blues have already offloaded a number of key players this summer, with Kai Havertz to Arsenal, Ruben Loftus-Cheek to Serie A side AC Milan and N’Golo Kante, Edouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly moving from Stamford Bridge in Saudi arabia
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