Inter needs to pay the fee for Romelu Lukaku

According to Sky Sports reports, on Saturday Italian club Inter saw a bid of around £53.9million turned down for Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku. It is just the latest report of the Nerazzurri attempting to sign the Belgian striker.

The problem is that it seems pretty clear the Red Devils want closer to the £75million initial fee they paid Everton to sign the forward back in 2017. It seems Inter are attempting to get the 26-year-old on the cheap compared to his previous transfer fee.

Inter probably don’t have the cash

The reason Inter are making these bids nowhere near United’s valuation is that the Italian club probably do not have the cash to sign the striker. Their owners are rich, but they do not want to fall foul of FFP like their neighbour’s AC Milan.

That seems fair enough if they do not have money. However, they keep making bids, maybe in the hope that the Red Devils cave and let Lukaku go for a cheaper fee. Considering that United do not need to sell the forward, it looks unlikely they will lower their asking price by a significant amount this summer.

Everybody wants the move

It now looks like all parties would be happy if Lukaku ended up plying his trade with the Nerazzurri next season. The former Everton striker has endured mixed fortunes at Old Trafford. He has a decent scoring record, but just as at Everton, he has failed to deliver in the big games for United.

The noises coming from the Lukaku are suggesting that he hopes that the move goes through. The forward has not yet featured in the Red Devils pre-season campaign, as boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has stated the forward is injured.

Maybe it’s another dream move for the striker! Inter head coach Antonio Conte is a self-confessed fan of the Belgium striker. The Italian tried to sign Lukaku before he joined United from Everton. Reportedly the striker is Conte’s biggest transfer target this summer.

United would more than likely be happy to sell Lukaku this summer, for the right price anyway. Lukaku is far from certain to start on a regular basis next season, with England striker Marcus Rashford seemingly ahead of Lukaku in the pecking order at Old Trafford.

United boss Solskjaer does have money to spend. However, a big fee for Lukaku would help him to strengthen in other areas of the team at the moment, which is virtually every area of the pitch.

Inter the clear favourites to sign Lukaku

The interest from Inter in Romelu Lukaku is very real. In fact, the Nerazzurri are now odds of 1/6 to be the forwards next club. It is not impossible that Romelu Lukaku will still stay in Manchester this summer. However, the short odds reflect the fact that a deal is likely to be thrashed out eventually between all parties.

Inter boss Conte seems determined to sign Lukaku this summer. He moved to Milan with the objective of overthrowing former club Juventus next season. The Italian must believe that signing Lukaku is the key to knocking the Bianconeri off their perch next season.

The situation is simple really. Inter have to come up with an offer far closer to United’s valuation of Lukaku or move on. The forward will no doubt be hoping that the Nerazzurri agree on a fee with the Red Devils, as there is very little interest in him from elsewhere.

At the moment, the deal is in the balance and it could go either way. However, it now looks like it is in the best interests of everybody if Romelu Lukaku moves on this summer, and Inter seems to be his only likely destination.

Will Romelu Lukaku move to Inter this summer?