Romelu Lukaku has admitted that there are three clubs he would rather have joined instead of Chelsea in the summer.
The Belgium striker returned to Stamford Bridge in August after a very successful spell with Inter Milan.
Lukaku helped Inter win the Serie A title in 2021 – a year after firing them to the Europa League final.
But despite the on-field success, Inter was struggling financially. Lukaku was their most valuable asset and so a sale made sense.
Chelsea won the battle for his signature, paying a transfer fee of £97.5m according to BBC Sport.
But Chelsea were not Lukaku’s first choice, it seems.
Speaking to Sky Sport in Italy, in quotes published by Fabrizio Romano on Twitter, Lukaku recently revealed that he would have preferred a move to either Real Madrid, Barcelona or Bayern Munich.
“There are 3 teams at top level: Barcelona, Real, Bayern. All the players dream of them, that’s the truth. I thought I was going to one of those clubs after Inter,” said Lukaku.
“This didn’t happen and I said: ‘There is only one club where I can imagine myself, it’s Chelsea’”.
Lukaku to Sky: “There are 3 teams at top level: Barcelona, Real, Bayern. All the players dream of them, that’s the truth. I thought I was going to one of those clubs after Inter”.
“This didn’t happened and I said: there is only one club where I can imagine myself, it’s Chelsea”. pic.twitter.com/kZwfdYl4kB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 31, 2021
Fourth choice Chelsea may have been, but Lukaku still maintains that he loves the club with whom he was previously under contract from 2011 to 2014.
He added: “When Chelsea contacted me it was a challenge for me. Also because it bothered me a lot to have ever won Premier League titles in 8 years. It was hard to turn down the chance to return to the Premier League in the club I support since I was a child.”
Lukaku to Sky: “When Chelsea contacted me it was a challenge for me. Also because it bothered me a lot to have ever won Premier League titles in 8 years. It was hard to turn down the chance to return to the Premier League in the club I support since I was a child”. ? #CFC pic.twitter.com/aQ5JbJPALP
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 31, 2021
Although Lukaku has made it clear that he wanted to play for one of Europe’s biggest clubs upon leaving Inter, there are two such teams he has vowed to never represent.
He explained: “If Juventus or AC Milan will call me in the future? Never, never. Again: never. It’s never gonna happen. Juventus wanted me before Inter, but when Conte joined Inter it was my priority to join them. In Italy there’s only Inter for me”.
Lukaku to Sky: “If Juventus or AC Milan will call me in the future? Never, never. Again: never. It’s never gonna happen. Juventus wanted me before Inter, but when Conte joined Inter it was my priority to join them. In Italy there’s only Inter for me”. ? #Inter pic.twitter.com/5UqVuZISrR
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 31, 2021
