One of the hottest names in the transfer market last summer was Romelu Lukaku.
Lukaku’s original club is Chelsea in the English Premier League (EPL). Last season, Lukaku spent time on loan at Inter Milan in the Italian Serie A. Lukaku helped lead Inter Milan to the UEFA Champions League (UCL) final. By this point, the two were on good terms.
Lukaku had no intention of returning to Chelsea, and Inter Milan pushed for a full transfer. It looked like Lukaku was going to end his loan spell and become a full-time Inter player, but then came the twist of a lifetime. Lukaku stabbed Inter in the back. Lukaku publicly expressed his desire to join Inter, but behind the scenes, he was negotiating a transfer with Juventus. When this was revealed, Inter immediately withdrew their offer for Lukaku.
Lukaku was the “lame duck”. Chelsea had already lost interest, and Inter had canceled the deal. Juventus also backed out. Then came the speculation that the only place Lukaku could go was Saudi Arabia. That’s when a saving grace came in the form of Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma. Lukaku was loaned to AS Roma, where he was able to continue his European career.
What if Inter had signed Lukaku then? Would Inter have done as well as they did? The Nerazzurri had already clinched the title early. Inter Milan president Giuseppe Parotta shakes his head. He claims that Inter Milan could have won the title early if they didn’t sign Lukaku.
Speaking to Italy’s Sportmediaset, Parotta said: “There are times in life when you get really lucky. That’s what Inter Milan have been this season and we were lucky in the summer transfer window. I won’t deny that Lukaku was a target for Inter. Things 토토사이트 went differently.”
“When the situation changed, we prepared other projects. We saw the value of Lautaro Martinez, we saw the value of Marquis Turin. Hakan Chalhanoglu also scored a lot of goals. We approached it with an economic and technical logic, and Inter Milan became the most aggressive team.”
In fact, Inter Milan is the overwhelming favorite to score 81 goals this season. AC Milan is second with 64 goals. That’s a huge difference. And Martinez is the top scorer with 23 goals. Chalhanoglu has 13 goals and Toure has 12. Three players have more goals than Lukaku’s 11.
Parotta also expressed his confidence in coach Simone Inzaghi: “He is a coach who has continuity and a future. Inter Milan is in his cycle. Since his arrival, we have grown and won. The club and the coach have a symbiosis. We are consolidating our goals.”