The Belgian striker leaves Inter, the transfer will be official when the Italian champions have found the replacement
MILANO
It is not the end of a fairy tale but rather that of an illusion: Inter sells Romelu Lukaku, the most prestigious man, the footballer who made the championship possible, a leader and a symbol. The striker, called by Antonio Conte to Inter, packs his bags and returns to England (after two championships and 64 goals scored in 95 appearances) to return to wearing the Chelsea shirt, which for having paid him 115 million euros in the coffers of the Nerazzurri club. The agreement will be made official as soon as Inter have found a replacement: the hot names are Belotti (Turin), Dzeko (Rome), Zapata (Atalanta) and Jovic (Real Madrid). No second thoughts on the part of a gasping Chinese property that needs cash to meet its debts to survive. The protests of the fans did not help. There seemed to be a rift between the CEO Beppe Marotta, the director Piero Ausilio and the Chinese ownership of Suning, even rumors of resignation were circulating, rumors that have not found confirmation. Just Marotta declared the player non-transferable on 25 July during the match against Lugano. Promise that fans were asking to honor after swallowing Hakimi’s bitter sale. Conte must have smelled the air of demobilization and preferred to leave with an important and prestigious title.
Now the questions are growing, the first concerns Lautaro Martinez, then also other important players such as Barella. There could be a domino effect in the face of a project with increasingly blurred and worrying outlines. Simone Inzaghi, a man of the field, sketches but is certainly disappointed and bewildered. Difficult to defend the Scudetto. Lukaku’s enthusiasm died away and so he finally agreed to leave. Chelsea welcomes him with open arms, for him a salary of 11 million plus bonuses against the 8 and a half million he received at Inter. It is certainly not an economic issue for Lukaku but the disappointment of a club that seems to have lost its way. Visits have already been scheduled, Lukaku has not trained with Inter and will not be in Parma today.
the other negotiations
Milan, for its part, after a full start, has abruptly curbed the purchase claims and is now waiting to place the “tap” Ilicic, coming out of Atalanta and destined to replace Calhanoglu, passed to the cousins of Inter. The Rossoneri’s goal is to reinforce the trocar and the Atalantino – not called up by Gasperini for the friendly match with the Londoners of West Ham – seems to be the main suspect. Juve: the emissaries of Dybala met with the bianconeri managers to resume the discussions concerning the renewal of the Argentine’s contract, which will expire in June 2022. The aperitif is served, the road traced, but the agreement remains far away. Southampton would have entered the race for Abraham, Chelsea striker targeted by Atalanta. The signing of the Englishman becomes essential especially if Zapata were to move to Inter. Roma loses Xhaka, on the verge of signing the renewal with Arsenal.—