Graeme Souness has given his lowdown on Romelu Lukaku’s return to Chelsea and the Premier League, claiming he’s an ‘enormous fan’ of the Belgian.
After chasing Erling Haaland for most of the summer, Chelsea are closing in on the transfer of Romelu Lukaku. The Inter Milan striker looks like this summer’s marque signing, not only for the Blues but also in the Premier League. The move, however, was not pre-planned and happened out of nowhere.
Chelsea are reportedly paying £97.5 million for his signature, as the 28-year-old makes a return to Stamford Bridge seven years after leaving for Everton. The London side tried to re-sign him later on, but then he moved to Manchester United and subsequently to Inter Milan, where he helped them win the Serie A after 11 years.
His time in Italy changed his game, as he looked physically sharper and more potent in front of goal, compared to the years spent in England. However, many believe he has unfinished business in the Premier League, especially with Chelsea, as he is likely to make them contenders on all fronts.
Inter had no plans to sell their star names, especially Lukaku, but their financial situation dictated a different strategy. The need to raise massive funds has seen manager Antonio Conte depart, while star right-back Achraf Hakimi was sold to PSG. They are now on the verge of finalising a move for Lukaku, who will fill their empty coffers.
Graeme Souness was on hand to provide his lowdown on the matter among those pundits who gave their opinion on the move. The Liverpool legend was generally pleased with the move, unlike some others, including Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola who questioned the move.
The Mirror published quotes from an article in The Times by Souness. The Liverpool legend said, “Romelu Lukaku may still have unfinished business at Chelsea, who sold him to Everton seven years ago. I am an enormous fan of him. I used to say he was the centre forward that Premier League centre-halves would least like to play against because of his speed and strength.
“He appears to have a different focus to his game from going to Italy. Whether that is down to losing weight and a different training regime, I do not know, but he appears a more energised player. He has won the league in Italy at Inter Milan, and everybody is raving about him there, so does he want to come back to England and show people the real Lukaku?”
So will the real Lukaku show up for Chelsea, or will the Manchester United version, who disappointed on many counts, come back? Our take is that he is a different player than 2-3 years ago, and Chelsea are getting their hands on a prime striker who is out there to prove his critics wrong.
