Following Chelsea’s announcement of Romelu Lukaku’s return to the club, his agent decided to speak out on the saga which moved the striker from Inter Milan.
On social media, Frederico Pastorello released a long statement about how tough the job of handling the move has been over the past few weeks, especially regarding fake news about the transfer.
“They have been very intense and demanding weeks. I would have liked to speak earlier. But I preferred to wait for Romelu’s transfer to Chelsea FC to be made official. Now, with a cool head, I can share my thoughts on the affair, in the face of so much news, too many innuendo and comments that are nothing short of inappropriate in recent days,” said Pastorello (via FC Inter News).
“First of all, I want to clarify that I have always accepted – and will continue to do so in the future – confrontation and constructive criticism: they are part of the game for those who play a role with considerable media relevance.
“What we absolutely cannot tolerate are the falsehoods, insinuations, offences and threats we have received (even against my family and my daughters, for example) that have largely exceeded the limits of civilisation, decency and tolerance.”
The agent claimed that a move back to the Stamford Bridge has always been appealing for Lukaku, who was excited once Chelsea showed interest to sign him this summer.
“In a scenario in which Lukaku has never publicly expressed any discomfort or discontent regarding his experience at Inter, his contractual situation or the well-known corporate events, Chelsea’s interest really touched Romelu’s soul from the very first moment, because that club represents something unique and special for him.
“In recent days I saw a video from 2009 in which the 16-year-old visited the Stamford Bridge stadium with his school and swore that one day he would play on that pitch. I advise everyone to look at it carefully: the clarity with which a 16-year-old boy was already designing his future is impressive. He wanted to wear that shirt, he managed it when he was 18 and unfortunately he left before he could make his mark and win something important.
“This challenge has remained like a worm in his heart and mind for all these years. And when, almost unexpectedly, the opportunity to try again materialised, at 28 years and after two seasons as an absolute protagonist with Inter – he almost didn’t believe it. It was a chance to come full circle and, as an exemplary professional he is, he decided it was time to accept that challenge again.”
Pastorello carried on with several arguments about his integrity and responding to all people who criticised him for the past few weeks. The agent seems to have been heavily affected by the comments, as the transfer became a big controversy among the Italian media and Inter Milan fans.
Lukaku signed a five-year deal with Chelsea, who spent €115m on the move, and should soon be available for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
