With every day that passes, we edge closer towards the possible definitive Chelsea exit of Romelu Lukaku.
The Belgian striker has made it clear he has no intention of playing for the Blues again, regardless of what Mauricio Pochettino said in his press conference, and he certainly won’t be at Cobham on Wednesday.
This is because Inter Milan are in the process of opening official negotiations with Chelsea, which Gazzetta dello Sport cover on Tuesday.
The Italian newspaper have a big cover story about the situation, with the main point being that Lukaku wants to go back to the San Siro club and nowhere else.
This is nothing new in itself, but there have been new movements in the saga, first with a phone call taking place between Chelsea and the forward’s entourage on Monday.
This wasn’t just any conversation, however, but ‘the official green light for a real negotiation’, which is ‘ready to take off’.
The first offer from Inter was ‘deemed low’, but they intend to ‘send a robust raise in the next few days’, with the €30m up front ‘largely loaded with the addition of bonuses’.
Whilst this might not be the ‘decisive step’, it will certainly be ‘an acceleration’ after Sébastien Ledure, Lukaku’s lawyer, sat down with Chelsea to listen to them before making it clear his client only wants Inter.
Everyone knows the player ‘can’t wait forever’ for the Serie A side to get a deal done, but, for the time being, he’s staying put and won’t make an appearance in London.
Chelsea’s €45m request could ‘immediately drop to €40m without drama’, but there would still need to be a ‘mutual effort’ to reach an agreement, since the Italians won’t go that high up front.
The clock is ticking, as the Blues won’t want this dragging on beyond the current week, as they see it as a distraction for Pochettino, who still doesn’t know whether he will have an unhappy Belgian in his ranks next season or not.
