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LONDON. — Chelsea are set to sign Romelu Lukaku after Italian Serie A football champions Inter Milan reportedly accepted a £97.5million offer for the striker.
Blues owner Roman Abramovich has been desperate to bring Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge, seven years after selling the Belgium international to Everton.
Lukaku spent three seasons at Stamford Bridge at the start of his career but only made 15 appearances for the club before heading to Goodison Park.
Almost a decade on, Lukaku is one of the best strikers in Europe, having scored 87 goals in 166 matches for Everton, 42 goals in 96 games for Manchester United and 64 goals in 95 appearances for Inter Milan.
The 28-year-old has been particularly impressive in Italy, scoring 24 goals in the league last season to help Antonio Conte’s side win the Serie A title.
Chelsea expressed interest in resigning Lukaku almost two months ago but it appeared he would be staying put as Inter placed a £100m price-tag on his head.
Inter Milan reportedly rejected a £85m bid from Chelsea earlier in the week and, while they were holding out for £102m, reports in Italy say they have now accepted an offer for £97.5m.
The Italians were considering requesting a Chelsea player – Marcos Alonso, Emerson Palmieri or Davide Zappacosta as part of the deal to sell Lukaku but Corriere dello Sport say they have been satisfied by the near-£100m fee. Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel, who led the club to Champions League glory last season, was asked about his interest in Lukaku earlier last week.
The former PSG and Borussia Dortmund manager said: “I will not talk about players who don’t play in my squad.
“Romelu Lukaku is a fantastic player but he’s a player from Inter and with all due respect, I will not talk about him in this situation.” — Metro.
Online Reporter