Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku has been tipped to leave Stamford Bridge for a cut price, despite the club placing a €45m asking price on his head.
The Belgian forward is expected to leave this summer, although clubs from around Europe are reluctant to meet Chelsea’s asking price.
Inter Milan had toyed with the idea of signing Lukaku on loan again but with the obligation to buy included in the deal.
Chelsea rejected this bid and now the two clubs are back to the drawing board. Along with Inter, Juventus and Al-Hilal are also interested.
While Lukaku wasn’t keen on the idea of a move to Saudi to begin with, he is now said to be considering the move.
Gabby Agbonlahor has had his say on the situation and he believes that Chelsea and Inter will eventually come to an agreement.
“Negotiations could be tricky between Chelsea and Inter for Lukaku,” the pundit told Football Insider.
“Inter Milan knows they want to offload Lukaku, so they will not need to offer what the Blues are demanding.
“Both parties will offer their best deal and Inter could say either take or leave it, with Chelsea not wanting to be stuck with a player who won’t be used.
“When it gets closer to August and a deal still hasn’t been accepted, they are going to have to eventually accept Inter’s offer.”
The Belgian forward had his fair share of injury problems last season, but he still managed to score 14 goals across all competitions.
Chelsea aren’t likely to receive anywhere near the £97.5m they spent on Lukaku back in 2021, but they are keen to recoup some of their original investment.
With Juventus and Al-Hilal now in the race to sign Lukaku, time will tell if Chelsea do receive the €45m they are looking for.
He is contracted with the club until 2026, although Mauricio Pochettino will be keen to iron out his situation as soon as possible.
Along with Lukaku, Chelsea also hope to sell the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic in the next few weeks.
The summer rebuild is already well underway at Stamford Bridge, but there is still plenty of work to be done.
[football365]