Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku ended up joining Roma on loan during the summer transfer window.
Looking at the transfer, Italian journalist Gabriele Marcotti has now dubbed him as the biggest loser of the 2023 summer transfer window while speaking to ESPN.
The player was expected to join Inter Milan permanently after being on loan at the Italian club last season. However, the move collapsed in the end because of the 30-year-old’s decision to negotiate with Juventus as well. Marcotti believes that he should have moved to Inter Milan instead and his idea to entertain other clubs resulted in him joining Roma who are not even in the Champions League.
“Number one has to be Romelu Lukaku,” said Marcotti. “It was all so easy for him. All so simple. Just answer Inter’s phone call. You would have got your permanent move, a club you say ‘I love’ and a club that loves you. You would have had your big deal.
“I have no idea what he was thinking. He ends up at Roma, not the worst place in the world. But it’s another loan deal. Another question mark. No Champions League football. No question. He screwed it up.”
The 30-year-old has fallen down the pecking order at Chelsea and the Blues are clearly not keen on him staying at Stamford Bridge. They were hoping to sell him permanently this summer but the Belgian has failed to attract suitors. There were rumours that Juventus could look to sign him but the Italian outfit did not manage to agree on a deal either.
It will be interesting to see if Lukaku can secure a permanent exit from Chelsea in the coming months.
A loan move to Roma leaves a question mark over his future and he will have to start worrying about his permanent future once again in a few months. The Belgian can be a world-class player on his day and he needs to sort out his future quickly.
Lukaku has helped Inter Milan win the league title previously and it remains to be seen whether he can help Jose Mourinho’s men challenge for the league title this season.
There is no doubt that he can be unplayable at times but he will have to get over his fitness problems and focus on his football in order to truly showcase his ability at the capital club.
Chelsea will certainly hope that the 30-year-old can hit the ground running for Roma and impress with his performances in the Italian league so that they can find a permanent buyer for him at the end of the season.
