Romelu Lukaku says he will be staying at Inter Milan despite Premier League transfer interest
Romelu Lukaku led Inter Milan to Serie A title this year and was crowned league's MVP for this campaign; Belgium striker attracted interest from Chelsea and Manchester City for a transfer back to the Premier League but confirmed he wants to stay in Italy next year
Romelu Lukaku has confirmed his wish to stay at Inter Milan next season despite transfer interest from the Premier League.
The 28-year-old has enjoyed a stellar season in Italy and led Antonio Conte’s side to the Scudetto, bringing an end to Juventus’ nine-year domestic winning cycle.
His 24 goals in 36 Serie A appearances earned him the league’s MVP award and attracted the interest of Chelsea and Manchester City for a return to the Premier League.
However, speaking from Belgium’s training camp ahead of Euro 2020, Lukaku confirmed he will not be looking to pursue a move away from San Siro in the summer despite Conte’s exit and Simone Inzaghi’s impending arrival as head coach.
“Yes, I am staying,” he told Dutch broadcaster VTM.
“I’ve already had contact with the man who normally becomes our new manager. Maybe I shouldn’t say that yet… but it was a very positive conversation.”
Lukaku is valued at around £100m by Inter and they want to cash in on at least one of their high-profile players, which was part of the reason behind Conte’s decision to quit as manager last week.
The former Chelsea boss, who is now in talks to join Tottenham, was told the club needed to make a €100m cut to its budget for next season.
According to Sky in Italy, Achraf Hakimi remains the most likely of Inter’s star players to leave this summer, with the £70m-rated Morocco international being hotly pursued by Paris Saint-Germain.
Lukaku arrived in the Premier League in 2011 when he joined Chelsea from Anderlecht but failed to score for the Blues in his first season, prompting the club to loan him out to West Brom and then Everton in successive seasons.
He eventually flourished after joining the Toffees on a permanent deal in 2014, scoring 53 goals across three seasons at Goodison Park, which earned him a £75m move to Old Trafford in 2017.
After two seasons of ups and downs at United, he signed for Inter on a five-year deal in 2019, scoring 64 goals in two seasons for the Nerazzurri so far.
