Chelsea have rejected Inter Milan’s latest bid for Romelu Lukaku and are seeking a fee in the region of €45million (£38.5m, $49.4m).
Juventus and Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal are also interested in Lukaku, should Inter be unable reach Chelsea’s desired fee.
Al Hilal — one of the four Saudi Pro League sides taken over by the country’s Public Investment Fund recently — have been pursuing a deal for Lukaku for weeks but the Belgium international is still holding out for a return to Inter.
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Inter, though, are not close to reaching Chelsea’s target of €45m, which is still some way off the £97.5m the Italians received for Lukaku when they sold him to the west London club in the summer of 2021.
The 30-year-old spent last season back on loan at Inter following a disappointing 2021-22 campaign at Chelsea, where he scored 15 goals in 44 matches in all competitions.
In 2022-23, Lukaku scored 14 times in 37 games for Inter, who reached the Champions League final and finished third in Serie A.
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New Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, was asked about Lukaku’s future in his unveiling press conference on Friday.
On whether he expects Lukaku to report back to Chelsea for pre-season training, Pochettino said: “The situation, all the parts know what we think. I think in that case, he needs to come back the 12th, or 13th into the squad for the start of pre-season.
The Argentine coach was then asked if he had had a conversation with Lukaku yet or just anticipated his arrival back at the Cobham training centre.
“Of course,” Pochettino replied. “Like with all of the players, the first thing they do when they arrive is to come to my office and see me. That is what I expect if he is still a Chelsea player.”
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(Photo: KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images)
