Struggling to get any connection going with Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea following his big return from Inter, Romelu Lukaku didn’t last long at Stamford Bridge.
The Belgium international wanted out this summer, which he made very clear, and Inter came back for him to help him return to Milan on loan until the end of the season.
Chelsea were delighted, the Serie A side were too, and the striker was ready to hit his previous heights with the Serie A club, until injury struck.
The forward was out for a lengthy period of time, came back, only to injure himself again, which put his World Cup spot in doubt.
He was eventually picked by Roberto Martinez, but it remains to be seen how fit the Chelsea man is for the tournament in Qatar.
Over in Italy, there are some who doubt about his future at Inter, who were already planning to try and extend the loan from the Blues for a second year.
Fabio Ravezzani, an Italian journalist, spoke to Telelombardia about the situation, and did wonder if the player could return to Chelsea.
He said, relayed by FC Inter 1908: “The medical staff of Inter cannot say it, but Lukaku’s is not an easy problem to solve. Inter actually did not underestimate the problem, but when the staff noticed the scar on the muscle they understood that time was necessary to allow it to reabsorb. I understand that the reabsorption was not as fast as it seemed.
“The thing that worries is that they tried to make him play and he stopped again. This suggests that the situation is much more complicated than what we had to assume. This also has an impact on Lukaku’s future at Inter, given that the club will have to consider whether to confirm it or not.”
That’s something that will need to be monitored, and the World Cup will be the first real test for Lukaku, as any injury picked up there could have an impact on the rest of his season and his potential future at Chelsea and Inter.