Personal terms agreed: Romelu Lukaku closing in on record return to Chelsea

CaughtOffside exclusively reported on Wednesday morning that Lukaku was due to meet face-to-face with Inter Milan CEO Giuseppe Marotta to discuss his future with the Italian champions.

Chelsea is understood to have offered a club-record €130M in exchange for Lukaku, a bid that Inter is prepared to accept, club sources told CaughtOffside.

There was a lingering question mark over Lukaku’s intentions, with the striker understood to be happy with life at Inter and in no rush to leave, certainly prior to the emergence of Chelsea’s interest.

However, our understanding is that Lukaku has reached an agreement with Chelsea over personal terms, leaving the deal at a very advanced stage.

Lukaku initially signed for Chelsea as a teenager but was never afforded an opportunity to impress. As a result, he was forced to move elsewhere in pursuit of regular game-time.

Now 28-years-old, he is among the best strikers on the planet, with a record of 64 goals in 95 games for Inter testament to that.

Losing Lukaku would be an immeasurable blow for Inter, with CaughtOffside’s belief that they have already identified three strikers as potential replacements: Atalanta’s Duvan Zapata, Joaquin Correa from Lazio, and Fiorentina’s Dusan Vlahovic.

Inter are likely to seek assurances that they will be able to get one of the three through the door prior to giving the final sign-off for Lukaku’s departure.