World Cup over? Lukaku's injury nightmare continues

Robin Bairner

• 31 Oct 2022 07:33 CDT
• 3 min read

Inter striker Romelu Lukaku continues to endure a nightmare season on loan from Chelsea, with the Belgium international in line to miss the World Cup due to injury.

Lukaku returned to Italy after a miserable spell in the Premier League with the Blues, but the scene of arguably his great 2020/21 season has proven little comfort since his return.

The 29-year-old, who is valued by FootballTransfers at €54 million, has managed only five appearances for the Nerazzurri. In 256 minutes on the field, he has scored two goals and created another, but the former Manchester United man’s campaign has been dominated by a hamstring complaint.

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Lukaku picked up the problem in late August and only made his return to action during a 3-0 win over Sampdoria on Saturday. However, he has suffered a fresh injury setback.

“Lukaku underwent medical examinations at the Humanitas Clinic in Rozzano this morning, highlighting a strain in the myocardial scar of the femoral biceps of the left thigh. The player’s condition will be assessed again in the next few days,” Inter confirmed in a statement.

There are conflicting reports as to what this means for his World Cup prospects. Gazzetta dello Sport suggests that it could mean that he will miss Belgium’s campaign, while Fabrizio Romano has announced that the striker will be back in time for the competition. In any case, with just three matches to play before Qatar 2022 begins, Lukaku looks highly unlikely to feature for Inter before 2023.

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Inter, meanwhile, are working on a deal to sign Lukaku on a permanent basis from Chelsea, who signed him from the Serie A champions for €115 million in the summer of 2021. His value has plummeted since then – and will continue to do so while he sits out injured – and as such the Blues face losing millions on him.