Belgium’s striker Romelu Lukaku had Chelsea and Real Madrid in his head in his last season at Manchester United according to his agent Federico Pastorello.
Recall that Romelu Lukaku started his Premier League career at Chelsea on August 8, 2011. The Premier League side bought the 28-year-old Belgian striker from a Belgian side RSC Anderlecht for a transfer fee worth €15 million.
Despite how promising he was, he could not establish himself at Chelsea. Hence, he moved to Everton in 2014 for €35.36 million. While at Everton, he became a goalscoring machine, a form that attracted Manchester United to pay €84.70 million for his services.
While at Manchester United between 2017 and 2019, he scored as many goals as he could (42 goals in 96 games) but he and the coach of the club, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, did not get along so well especially during the 2018-2019 season.
Hence, in 2019, Romelu Lukaku agreed to move to Inter Milan for a transfer fee worth €74 million. While in Italy under coach Antonio Conte, he became one of the most consistent strikers in Europe.
So, during last summer’s transfer window when Chelsea needed a striker badly, the Premier League club decided to return to Lukaku and paid a whopping €115 million for him to rejoin the club.
Lukaku returned to the club on August 12, 2021, and immediately fitted in with the style of coach Thomas Tuchel.
Lukaku’s football agent, Federico Pastorello who was behind the deal that returned him to Chelsea told Sky Sports that the Premier League club was the footballer’s childhood dream and also wishes to play for Real Madrid.
The football agent said: “During his last season at Man United he always had Chelsea in his head. Real Madrid as well I have to admit. That is another dream of his in terms of imagining his career, but Chelsea was always 100 percent his target.
“They were the love of his childhood so there was always this desire to come back. It was a question of pride. He had that in his head and his heart…
“Two years of work with Mr. Conte helped him. He can score left, right, head. He has completed himself as a striker working with Mr. Conte. He also had the opportunity to improve himself personally.
“He felt wanted. This is what he was not able to feel at Man United. That happens. It was actually another reason he decided to come here because Mr. Tuchel really made a fantastic speech with him.
“He gave him the feeling that he really wanted him, that he was the perfect last piece in the puzzle. A player must decide to go in a team with a coach that really wants him.”
Romelu Lukaku is still out with an ankle injury after suffering a bad run of games
Romelu Lukaku was among the first players to leave Belgium national team camp during the October FIFA break because of muscle fatigue.
However, coach Tuchel used him for the Premier League game against Brentford on October 16. He didn’t score in the game but the coach still used him in the Champions League game against Malmo on October 20.
It was during the Champions League game that he sustained an ankle injury which forced him out of the game. Chelsea still went on to win 4-0 without him. Since then, he has been out of football battling to return to full fitness.
Before the injury, Romelu Lukaku failed to score for Chelsea in seven consecutive matches in all competitions which was contrary to how he started his second era at the Premier League side.
This development has been a course of concern to some Chelsea fans but his football agent Federico Pastorello believes that Lukaku was born to score goals.
“Expectation is very high and when a player of his level returns, people think he will score every game,” the agent said.
“He got used to doing that (in Milan). He is very committed so I am not worried. I’m 100 percent sure without the injury he’d have scored more than one. He was born to score goals.”
Romelu Lukaku’s contract with Chelsea will expire on June 30, 2026. His current transfer market value is €100 million according to tranfermarkt.com.
