Chelsea squad is currently busy in pre-season at United States. Many of their players are with the squad. However, some are left out of the squad due to various reasons. One of them is their striker Romelu Lukaku who spent the last two seasons on loan. Lukaku wants to join Napoli and reunite with his former boss at Inter. However, the deal is not getting any further and Chelsea are getting tired of it. As a result Chelsea have agreed another deal with a Premier League side who want a backup striker. Aston Villa are interested to make Romelu Lukaku their backup for Ollie Watkins. However, Napoli are still at the top when it comes to Lukaku transfer news.
Chelsea ready to part ways with Lukaku
Romelu Lukaku joined Chelsea in 2011 from Anderlecht for around £17 million including add-ons. He was with the club for three season but spent two of them on loan. In 2014, Lukaku joined Everton and enjoyed 4 very good season before signing for Manchester United. His scoring numbers dropped at United but still were decent. In 2019, Inter Milan signed Lukaku and he once again started scoring regularly. He enjoyed very impressive two seasons in Italy under Antonio Conte.
In 2021, Chelsea made a decision to sign Lukaku back. They paid £97.5 million to Inter to get his signature. However, Lukaku was unable to met the expectations the club had from him. He scored only 15 goals in the 44 matches played in 2021/22 season. As a result, Chelsea sent Lukaku on a loan back to Inter in 2022/23 season. In 2023/24 season he was again sent on loan to Roma. Now, Chelsea want to sell Lukaku permanently in this transfer window and earn some of their money back.
Aston Villa linked with Romelu Lukaku
Aston Villa want to sign a backup striker for Ollie Watkins. There were rumours about Watkins leaving Villa, but it does not seem like that as per now. Jhon Duran was the backup striker last season. However he told the club that he wants to leave this summer. Duran signed for Villa last year but has not been able to get enough playing time. As a result he wants to move away and try to be a regular starter. West Ham United submitted a bid of £35 million for Duran but it was quickly rejected. Hammers have now shifted their focus on Niclas Fullkrug.
According to Football 365, Chelsea have agreed a deal with Aston Villa. Lukaku is training alone at Cobham training ground and is only interested to join Napoli. However, Chelsea have told him to join Villa and clean up the space. If Villa are able to sign Lukaku, it will be a great signing for them. Lukaku has a lot of experience in the Premier League. Despite him not being at his best in the recent seasons, he has showed the world his capability. He can prove as a great backup option for Ollie Watkins who just had the season of his life. In addition, Romelu Lukaku will get Champions League football with Aston Villa. In contrast, he will not get to play in any European competition if he moves to Napoli.
Napoli still the favourites to sign Lukaku
Despite Villa’s interest in Lukaku, Napoli are still at the top when it comes to Lukaku transfer news. Lukaku only wants to join Antonio Conte at Napoli. The duo helped Inter win the Serie A title when back in the time. Conte loves Lukaku and has told Napoli board to sign him. Napoli are ready to sell Victor Osimhen and this maybe involved in the deal. Chelsea are interested in Osimhen from a long time. However they are unwilling to pay his €100 million demanded price. They can convince Napoli for a swap deal between Lukaku and Osimhen. This will drop Osimhen’s demanded price in the range of €60 million to €70 million.
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