Inter Milan are hoping to strike a salary-sharing agreement with Chelsea to bring Romelu Lukaku back to the San Siro this summer, according to reports.
The 29-year-old only left Italy for a club-record £97.5m return to his boyhood club, but the love affair has ended just after one season with the Belgium international looking to reunite with his former team.
Lukaku, who scored 15 goals in all competitions for Chelsea last season, appears to be set on a return to the Nerazzurri and compromises are prepared to be made to make a loan deal happen.
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According to The Sun, Inter are ready to agree to a wage-share which would see them cover just over a third of his estimated £325,000-a-week wages at Stamford Bridge, meaning Thomas Tuchel's side would still have to pay him £200,000-a-week if he were to leave on a temporary basis.
Chelsea are claimed to want a £20m loan fee to cover some of their costs, but 'lots of hurdles' remain to overcome for a deal to be thrashed out between the two clubs.
As it stands, with the current terms on the table Chelsea will not proceed and won't allow Lukaku to leave out of sentiment. They want a replacement lined up. Robert Lewandowski has been linked after his admission of wanting to part ways with Bayern Munich, however he has made his next destination clear.
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"No other offers were even considered by me other than that of Barcelona. I want to leave Bayern, that’s clear," he told OnetSport.
Claims in Italy by Gianluca Di Marzio have stated Lukaku, whose future could depend on director Marina Granovskaia's position at the club, has been speaking to Inter since Christmas trying to seal a return.
“Since last Christmas, Lukaku has been sending public and private messages to Inter, calling the directors and the coach, former teammates and the President, ready to leave a third of his salary in London, ready to do everything he can to make the impossible possible,” Di Marzio wrote in Milan-based newspaper Corriere della Sera.
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This transfer saga is only at its start ahead of Friday's opening of the transfer window for Tuchel and the Blues. For Inter, their summer market doesn't open until Friday 1st July.
Lukaku is currently with Belgium for their Nations League campaign but is sidelined through injury and will miss their clash against Poland on Wednesday, it has been confirmed.
Topics: Romelu Lukaku, Chelsea, Chelsea Transfer News & Rumours, Inter Milan
Matthew Debono