I was still at Inter but my head was already in London, admits Romelu Lukaku

09/04/2021

Romelu Lukaku admits that his heart was set on a return to Stamford Bridge once it became obvious that the offer from the London club was serious. The Belgium international was determined to complete a deal and an eventual transfer was agreed between Inter and Chelsea for €98 million.

Romelu Lukaku sealed a second homecoming with the Blues after he joined the club back in 2011 in the wake of being touted as a hot prospect at Anderlecht. Lukaku failed to establish himself with the English club as he was loaned to West Brom and Everton, before eventually making a permanent move to Goodison Park in 2014.

The forward then made a big-money switch to Manchester United in 2017 but his presence was seen as expendable at Old Trafford who sold the attacker to Inter for €80 million. Working under revered manager Antonio Conte, Lukaku stepped up his game and scored 64 goals and provided 16 assists in 95 appearances while leading the Italian club to Serie A glory last season. The 28-year-old has already made an impact for his new club as he scored for Chelsea against Arsenal on his debut.

The Belgian admitted that he forced the Italian champion's hand after learning that Chelsea was serious about acquiring his services.

"With Chelsea’s third offer, I knew it was serious and I wasn’t there anymore. Chelsea offered €110m plus Zappacosta, but Inter said no, so I went to Inzaghi’s office asking to find an agreement,” revealed Lukaku to HLN.

"I was still at Inter, but my head was already in London. Inter pulled me out of sh*t, I would have only left the Nerazzurri for Chelsea," he added.