If Romelu Lukaku didn’t think his current situation at Chelsea could get any worse, news of the release of an off the record chat at the time of his explosive Sky Italy interview won’t have done him any favours whatsoever.
Having already suggested that Chelsea were only his fourth choice as a playing destination and that he would’ve preferred to stay at Inter in any event, it now appears that the Belgian can’t wait to get back to Serie A.
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A tweet from the FedeNerazzurra account says that the brother of the journalist who conducted the interview noted that Lukaku had told his sibling he was already tired of living in London and wanted to go back to Inter immediately.
Marco Barzaghi, brother of Matteo who was the Sky Italia journalist interviewed Lukaku: “Lukaku only wants to return to Inter, he is already tired of London, tired of living in England. Romelu told my brother off the record that he wants to return to Inter NOW.” pic.twitter.com/VUmuKeH2jL
— FedeNerazzurra (@FNerazzurra1908) January 2, 2022
Given the timing of the interview coming out, and the way in which it has been drip-fed to a captive audience, one has to wonder whether it may have even been a deliberate ploy on Lukaku’s part to force Chelsea’s hand.
Thomas Tuchel has made the right decision in leaving him out of the line-up for the game against Liverpool on Sunday afternoon.
The apparent depth of feeling towards both Chelsea and Inter would potentially indicate that he doesn’t really have much of a future at Stamford Bridge.
His team-mates might be able to brush his words off with a pinch of salt, and Tuchel may believe he’s made his point, however, the Chelsea faithful won’t be so easily satisfied.
It’s certainly looking like a long way back for the Belgian.