After two years at Old Trafford, Manchester United decided to give up on the talents of Romelu Lukaku. The Premier League giants were happy to sell the man who was regarded as their next great striker upon his arrival, to Antonio Conte’s Inter.
Despite their financial troubles, the Beneamata identified the Belgian as the right player to fit into the plans of the former Juventus manager, and thus ended up sealing a 74 million euros operation in the summer of 2019.
After a year and a half at the Guiseppe Meazza, the former Everton man is apparently reaching the peak of his powers.
As demonstrated by his latest showing against Lazio in the past weekend, the current version of Lukaku simply has everything that you’d like to see in a center forward.
Extraordinary physical strength, exceptional pace for a man in his size, sublime finishing touch, plus the willingness to play for the team away from selfishness (as demonstrated by his assist for Lautaro Martinez against Lazio, instead of going for the personal hattrick).
The 27-year-old’s abilities are simply booming at the moment, as he is evolving into arguably the most terrifying striker in the world.
On the other hand, Manchester United opted to let go of Lukaku without even signing a capable replacement.
Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford are both incredibly talented players, but neither of them is a true number 9. These two strikers would have benefitted from having someone like the current Inter man playing alongside them at the moment.
As we’ve seen with Lautaro, the Argentine was struggling during his first season at Inter, but the arrival of a big target man like Lukaku allowed him to produce his best football, while forming a great bond with the former Red Devil.
Although the Belgium international had his difficulties during his second season with the club, the several formidable years he spent on the English shores – between West Bromwich Albion and Everton – could have been enough to earn him another chance for glory at Old Trafford. Not to mention that the 2018-2019 season was a particularly tough one for the entire club.
Therefore, United had been forced to rely on veterans who are in the twilight years of their careers – Odion Ighalo and now Edinson Cavani – to get on the scoresheet, whilst an arguably world class bomber was allowed to leave without major resistance.
So should the Red Devils regret the sale? Perhaps the near future will provide us with a clearer answer.