Chelsea may have an alternative solution to uncertainty over Romelu Lukaku’s future amid reported interest from AS Roma in the striker.
Inter Milan chief Giuseppe Marotta recently expressed his concern over Lukaku’s fitness and said that the player will return to Chelsea at the end of his loan spell this summer.
The earlier expectations were that Inter will negotiate to extend the loan deal.
This is still a possibility, of course, but it is clear that Chelsea will have to make a decision.
The simplest option would be to re-integrate the 29-year-old into Graham Potter’s first team.
However, unless Potter plans to use Lukaku regularly it does not really make sense to keep one of the highest-earning players in the squad just to be a back-up player.
Selling him is unlikely to be easy, too, unless Chelsea were prepared to take a significant loss after spending a reported £97.5million for the Belgium international in less than two years ago.
For it to work, Lukaku would likely also have to agree to reduce his wages as well.
It is therefore quite a surprise that Calciomercato claims that Jose Mourinho’s Roma are interested in the Chelsea loanee.
The report does not mention whether Roma are interested in a permanent deal or a loan, but they see him as a potential replacement for out-of-favour Tammy Abraham.
The former Chelsea striker has been struggling with his form, having scored just six goals in Serie A this season, and is no longer a regular starter under Mourinho.
The Blues are expected to be in the market for a new striker, but at this point, Abraham is unlikely to be on their shortlist.
Perhaps, it is worth giving Potter an opportunity to assess Lukaku in pre-season before making any decision because recouping their investment in the striker seems almost impossible.
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