Why Inter losing Conte is a boost to Chelsea Lukaku hopes

James Shearman

• Updated: 27 May 2021 14:51 BST
• 2 min read

Antonio Conte‘s exit from Inter could just be the start of a series of departure from the newly crowned Italian champions.

The 51-year-old reportedly pushed to leave after it was made clear that he would have to generate major funds in the transfer market this summer in order to help the club balance the books.

Should that prove to be the case, then a number of star names could be on their way out of San Siro before the start of the next campaign.

Lukaku to Chelsea?

Having scored 64 goals in 95 appearances for Inter, Romelu Lukaku seems an obvious candidate for a potential big-money sale.

And the Belgian has already been linked with a return to Chelsea, who are on the search for striking reinforcements after a disappointing debut season for Timo Werner.

The German arrived in a £45million deal from RB Leipzig last summer but only managed six Premier League goals – a return that is far from good enough for a team chasing titles.

What’s more, backup forwards Tammy Abraham and Olivier Giroud are both expected to leave Stamford Bridge after struggling for playing time under Thomas Tuchel.

Their departures would leave the club’s forward options looking rather sparse, making way for owner Roman Abramovich to cement his title ambitions with a star signing.

Chelsea have been linked with Harry Kane, Erling Haaland and Robert Lewandowski in recent weeks, but none of those seem as realistic as prying Lukaku away from Italy.

A reduced fee of around £70m could be too enticing a deal to turn down for the 28-year-old, who would surely be keen to finally prove he can cut it at a top Premier League club.

Lukaku struggled for chances at Chelsea before impressing during loan stints at West Brom and Everton, and kept up his prolific form once the latter move was made permanent.

However, a subsequent switch to Manchester United was deemed a failure despite returning 42 goals in 96 outings.

A return to Chelsea would offer Lukaku the opportunity to finally silence his doubters, and lead Chelsea’s renewed bid for top honours under Tuchel.