Barring an unforeseen turn of events, Inter will cave and sell Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea in short order. The player’s change of heart played a key role in the likely transfer. The management and the coaching staff did not want to give him up. On the other hand, ownership dictated to move forward with the negotiation, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
The deal might be closed within the weekend, and the player could be available for the European Super Cup. When Chelsea submitted their opening bid, CEO Giuseppe Marotta and Simone Inzaghi expressed their doubts to Suning. But the Zhang family and the Oaktree fund have the final say and prevailed. The Inter front office believed that the Achraf Hakimi deal and other departures would have been enough to safeguard the club’s finances.
The Chinese bigwigs thought differently, although they want the Blues to raise their offer. The Nerazzurri have to give six percent of the sum to Manchester United and five to his other previous clubs as per the FIFA bylaws. Inter still owe €55M to the Red Devils as installments for the 2019 transfer. Moreover, they will have to give back the fiscal savings on his salary because he would not stay in Italy for three straight years. Lukaku was acquired for €74M and weighs €39M on the balance sheets. The Nerazzurri aim to make a €90M net profit, therefore they need to get €120/130M from Chelsea. It will be by far the richest sale in their history.