Football news - Chelsea confirm Romelu Lukaku transfer from Inter Milan in club-record deal

Inter Milan and Chelsea have agreed a club-record deal for Romelu Lukaku to move to Stamford Bridge.

The Belgium striker will return to Stamford Bridge for a fee of £97.5 million and sign a five-year deal believed to earn the former Manchester United player around 13 million euros a year after tax.

Inter had been holding out for an all-cash deal, and are due to pay a proportion of the fee received to United.

Lukaku played for Chelsea between 2011 and 2014 but failed to establish himself as first-choice striker. He spent a season on loan at West Brom, before earning a move to Everton. From Everton he then moved to United, and then switched to Inter Milan in 2019.

It was there he earned a 2020/2021 Serie A winner’s medal as he played the best football of his career, returning 24 league goals in 36 league appearances, and 64 goals in all appearances for the club.

Chelsea have been following Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland but the Norwegian looks set to stay with the German side for at least another season. Lukaku will now almost certainly start ahead of Tammy Abraham, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz’ as the club’s striker. Olivier Giroud has left for AC Milan which made a player capable of playing as a traditional number nine as an essential requirement, noted Chelsea’s head coach, Thomas Tuchel.

The fee to be paid for Lukaku is a club record for Chelsea, beating the £72m they have previously spent on Kepa Arrizabalaga and Havertz. It is just slightly less Jack Grealish’s Premier League record £100m move to Manchester City from Aston Villa.

Under Thomas Tuchel Chelsea won the Champions League and finished in the top four, yet they so nearly missed out on the latter because of their wastefulness in front of goal.

Timo Werner was the primary culprit but he was not alone, Chelsea needed a more consistent goal-threat, Lukaku provides that.

But he also brings so much more, his link-up play has evolved under former Blues boss Antonio Conte and he should add a new dimension to the team.