Former Inter and Roma striker Romelu Lukaku has returned to Serie A to reunite with his favorite head coach, Antonio Conte, at Napoli. The Belgium international has enjoyed a bright start to life at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, tallying two goals and three assists in his first five appearances for the Partenopei.
Conte explicitly required Lukaku’s arrival after taking over the reins at Napoli. They won the Scudetto with Inter in 2020/21 and are seemingly on their way to another season-long fight for the title. Heading into Friday’s home match against Como, the Partenopei sit at the top of the table after stringing together a five-game unbeaten league run.
Napoli’s resurgence has coincided with Lukaku’s arrival from Chelsea. The 31-year-old talked to former Napoli stalwart Dries Mertens to gather information about the club and city before agreeing to join Conte.
“I already had a trusted friend who was preparing me for life here,” Lukaku said, as reported by Calciomercato. The presentation he had at Napoli left him speechless. “I was overwhelmed by my presentation. It was all so incredible. I was like: Wow!“
A telling impression of the city has made Lukaku keen to learn Neapolitan.
“When I go to the physiotherapist in the morning, I try to understand what the guys are saying, but it’s hard,” the new Napoli star admitted. “I’ll get there slowly. Give me a couple of months, then I hope to have a chat with someone when I go to the supermarket, who knows!“
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