Chelsea have been told they should give Romelu Lukaku another chance this summer, but only on one condition.
The 29-year-old is currently on loan at Inter Milan after rejoining the Italian side last summer until the end of the season. Lukaku returned to the San Siro just one season after making the switch to Chelsea for a club-record £97.5 million.
Lukaku has played 16 matches for Inter this season after missing a couple months of the season due to hamstring and muscle injuries. He has netted four goals in all competitions.
He is due to return to Chelsea this summer once his loan deal concludes, however it’s previously been reported that there is an agreement for Lukaku to stay at Inter for another season should they wish to keep him.
Former Belgium national team assistant Thierry Henry revealed that he believes Lukaku doesn’t want to go back to Chelsea.
“We had a discussion when he went to Chelsea, and I told him he’s going to find it difficult to play at Chelsea,” Henry said while on CBS Sports last month.
“That happened to be the case, because of the way Tuchel liked to play. Pressing, you’re the nine, I’m the nine, I’m the winger, you’re the winger, you have to change.
“Rom likes to stay where he is. Feed him, play him in early, and he’ll try to bully you.
“He was a different type of nine to what Tuchel wanted. Is he going to fit what Potter’s trying to do? They’re struggling enough. And what does he want to do? I don’t think he wants to go back. That’s the main thing. He wants to stay at Inter.”
No decision has yet been made by Lukaku or Inter over his future, with a decision likely to only be made at the end of the season when his season-long loan is assessed.
However, former Chelsea defender Glen Johnson, while speaking to Betfred, believes Chelsea would give the Belgium international another chance, but only if he ‘comes back with the bit between his teeth’.
He said: “It’ll all depend on what the manager sees in pre-season and what he sees from Romelu Lukaku at Inter Milan from now until the end of the season. If he comes back and plays like he did before, then he will be going straight back out the door to somewhere else.
“However, if he comes back with the bit between his teeth and he really wants to work hard, knuckle down and show everybody that he wants to be there, then he could still have a future at Chelsea.
“He’s already cost Chelsea a fortune, so it’s in everybody’s best interests for Romelu to work out at Chelsea. If he comes back with the bit between his teeth, then I believe Chelsea would love to give him a chance.”
