[SPOTV News = Reporter Lee Min-jae] Where will AS Roma's Romelu Lukaku (30) play next season?
Sports media 'CBS Sports' reported on the 14th (Korean time), "This season is a disappointing one for Lukaku, who joined AS Roma on a season-long loan from Chelsea last summer."
He added: "In 24 appearances under Jose Mourinho, Lukaku has scored 14 goals. If you look at the numbers, Lukaku's season has not been too bad so far, but if you analyze it more deeply, you can't be too happy about the impact he has had at AS Roma."
He also said, "He looks lonely in attack. He did not work with Paulo Dybala often due to Dybala's frequent injuries. He showed his best potential under the guidance of coach Antonio Conte. He received help from the winger, who plays a key role. "I received it often. Coach Mourinho's tactical system is different from Coach Conte's style. I receive less help from wingers and midfielders," he said.
He then mentioned, “In the last game against AC Milan, Lukaku touched the ball 26 times, but there was no shot.”
Lukaku, who played for Inter Milan for two seasons, signed a contract with Chelsea in the summer of 2021 for 97.5 million pounds (about 164.2 billion won), the club's highest transfer fee at the time. It was a will to solve the striker problem that had been continuously revealed.
However, he failed to show the influence he had during his time at Inter Milan. He scored a total of 64 goals over two seasons, but only 15 goals in 44 games for Chelsea. It was also a problem off the field. Lukaku told Italian media: “I am not happy at Chelsea. “It’s compared to my time at Inter Milan,” he said explosively. Chelsea officials were furious, and Lukaku was left off the playing list.
Lukaku, who had a falling out with Chelsea, went on a season-long loan to Inter Milan, his preferred club, for the 2022-23 season. He showed off his presence with 14 goals in a total of 37 games. He felt happy with his home team. He wanted to be with us in the 2023-24 season as well. Chelsea also wanted to release him. Inter Milan emerged as a likely destination.
But it turned out that he was looking into a move to Juventus behind the scenes. British media 'Sky Sports' mentioned, "Inter Milan, who felt betrayed by Lukaku, withdrew his recruitment." Juventus also immediately gave up on recruiting Lukaku. This is because there was an issue with the amount during the negotiation process.
The team that saved him later was AS Roma. I was reunited with coach Mourinho, who I worked with at Chelsea and Manchester United in the past. I came here on loan for one season.
He has 14 goals and 2 assists in 25 games this season. In Serie A, he ranks 5th in scoring with 8 goals and 1 assist. Initially, it seemed likely that he would move permanently to AS Roma after this season. This is because Chelsea reduced the transfer fee.
In October last year, transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano said, "Chelsea can send Lukaku to AS Roma on a permanent transfer at the end of this season. They have agreed to a permanent transfer. The transfer fee is 37 million pounds (about 61 billion won). “Everything,” he announced.
However, AS Roma are worried because their performance this season is not satisfactory. Coach Mourinho's contract is also expiring, so the future is unknown. In this situation, it is burdensome to bring in Lukaku as a full recruit.
The media predicted, “The future of Coach Mourinho and Lukaku will be decided in the next six months. Both may not be at AS Roma next season.”
