Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku rejoins Inter Milan on a season-long loan

Romelu Lukaku completed a return to Inter Milan without any obligation to buy after his nightmare for the second time at Chelsea.

Inter will pay Chelsea a loan fee of £ 6.9 million plus £ 3.5 million in bonuses if they win the Scudetto, and will cover all their wages this season.

The Chelsea striker flew to Milan Linate Airport at about 06:20 local time and posed with an Inter-scarf before getting into a car.

“I am so happy to be back,” he said. After completing his medical, Lukaku was officially announced as a new Inter player.

The Belgian striker has endured a season to forget after joining the Blues last summer for £ 98 million when he struggled to reach top form.

In a statement confirming the deal, Chelsea said: ‘The Belgian is returning to the Italian team where he previously spent two years and won the Serie A title.

‘Lukaku returned to Stamford Bridge last summer, 10 years after initially joining the club as a teenager, summing up life in the Premier League by scoring a win at Arsenal, before returning twice in his first home game achieved when we defeated Aston Villa 3. -0, who scored his first goals at Stamford Bridge.

‘He found the net again against Zenit St Petersburg, but this would be the last time until the return match with the same opponents three months later, as he struggled to shake off the consequences of an ankle injury he suffered in another European drew against Malmö in October. , which limited its appearances in early winter.

‘Lukaku scored in rugby Premier League matches against Aston Villa and Brighton between Christmas and New Year, before helping us lift the FIFA Club World Cup trophy for the first time in early February. He scored the only goal when we beat Al Hilal 1-0 in the semi-finals before starting the score in the 2-1 final over Palmeiras.

‘The striker contributed further goals in the FA Cup before helping us to a third place finish in the Premier League in May, with a 2-2 draw against Wolves and the score when we finished Leeds 3 -0.

“Combined with his first game at Chelsea between 2011 and 2014, Lukaku made a total of 59 appearances for the club and scored 15 goals.”

Inter chief executive Giuseppe Marotta confirmed the deal on Tuesday when he said: “We must thank the availability of the presidency and the owners. I hope it can be closed, not in a few hours, but in a few days. ‘

“We can not make it official yet,” he added. “He is a returning player who has done very well with us and we are happy to bring him home.”

The 29-year-old has scored just eight Premier League goals in the 2021-’22 campaign, and could not keep up with the performances that encouraged Chelsea to splash money in the first place.

Lukaku’s first game at Inter started in the summer of 2019 and he sacked Antonio Conte’s team to the Scudetto in the 2020-’21 season and scored 24 goals in Serie A.

The striker has four more years left on his contract at Stamford Bridge, but in the explosive interview over the festive season expressed a desire to return to the San Siro.

He stunned Chelsea six months ago by saying he was ‘not happy with the situation’ at the club for which he left the Italian giants, as well as keeping the door open for a return.

“I think everything that happened last summer was not supposed to happen that way … how I left Inter, the way I left the club, how I communicated with Inter fans – it bothers me, because it was not the right time, “he said. an interview with Sky Sport Italia.

“Now is the time to share my feelings. I’ve always said I have Inter in my heart: I know I will return to Inter, I really hope so. I’m in love with Italy, this is the right moment to talk and let people know what really happened.

‘I really hope from the bottom of my heart not to return to Inter at the end of my career, but when I’m still at the top level to win more together.