daniel chigunwe
LONDON. — Romelu Lukaku said he was extremely “happy and blessed to be back at this wonderful club,’’ after completing a £98 million deal to return to the English Premiership.
“It’s been a long journey for me, I came here as a kid who had a lot to learn, now I’m coming back with a lot of experience and more mature,’’ he told the club’s website.
“The relationship I have with this club means so much to me, as you know. I have supported Chelsea as a kid and now to be back and try to help them win more titles is an amazing feeling.
“The way the club is going fits my ambitions perfectly at 28 and just coming off winning Serie A. I think this opportunity comes at the right time and hopefully we can have a lot of success together.
“Since I left Chelsea, it’s been a long journey with a lot of ups and downs, but these experiences made me strong and the challenge is to try to help the team win some more trophies. I can’t wait to get started and to help the club achieve more success.’’
The 28-year-old landed at Biggin Hill airport on Wednesday evening, ahead of his move back to Stamford Bridge, having passed the main part of his medical in Milan, on Monday.
He then flew to Nice for meetings with his agent Federico Pastorello in Monaco on Tuesday and has now put pen to paper on an emotional return to west London.
Thomas Tuchel had been desperate to bolster his attacking options on the eve of the new season as the German coach eyes a shot at the Premier League title in 2021-22.
Olivier Giroud departed for AC Milan earlier this summer, Tammy Abraham has been made available for a move away and Timo Werner struggled in his first season following a £52m switch from RB Leipzig.
Lukaku agreed to a Chelsea return at the end of last week after it became clear Inter were willing to sell to alleviate their growing financial concerns.
It is understood that Lukaku has agreed terms on a contract worth around £10m a year after tax.
The deal to bring him back to west London also sees Manchester United — where Lukaku played for two years before heading to Serie A to join Inter — receive £3.8m as a sell-on clause.
The Blues kick their season off with a clash against London rivals Crystal Palace tomorrow and they’ll hope to have Lukaku available for his second debut.
Chelsea had been keen on Borussia Dortmund sensation Erling Haaland – only to find that path blocked on more than one occasion by the German club.
Dortmund sold Jadon Sancho to Manchester United earlier in the transfer window and so they were only prepared to accept a “crazy offer” for the Norwegian striker, something Chelsea were not prepared to give.
Lukaku returns with a point to prove at Chelsea having failed to fulfil his potential in his first go-round having joined as an exciting 18-year-old from Anderlecht.
He spent three seasons at Stamford Bridge at the start of his career but only made 15 appearances before heading to Everton.
Lukaku has since established himself as one of the best strikers in Europe, playing a key role in Inter Milan winning their first league title in more than a decade.
The striker netted 87 goals in 166 matches for Everton, 42 goals in 96 games for Manchester United and 64 goals in 95 appearances for Inter.
Chelsea originally floated the idea of a player-plus-cash deal with Marcos Alonso and Davide Zappacosta both on the Blues’ trading block.
But cash-strapped Inter wanted the entire fee paid out, rather than get a player as a subsidy, in their bid to arrest their financial crisis. — Mailonline.
Online Reporter