Graham Potter speaks out on Romelu Lukaku return to Chelsea

Graham Potter believes Romelu Lukaku could still have a future at Chelsea and has described the on-loan striker as a ‘fantastic player’.

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Chelsea spent £97.5 million on re-signing Lukaku from Inter in August 2021 but the Belgium international struggled in his first season back at Stamford Bridge, scoring 15 goals in 44 appearances.

Lukaku angered Chelsea just a few months after his return as he criticised Thomas Tuchel’s tactics during an interview with an Italian broadcaster and suggested that he was keen to return to Inter.

The 29-year-old got his wish last summer as Chelsea allowed Lukaku to re-join Inter on loan for the season but the striker has been hampered by injuries this term and has scored five goals in 19 games for the Serie A club so far.

When asked about Lukaku’s potential return to Chelsea, Potter told Canal+: ‘Well, he’s still a Chelsea player and we’re monitoring him of course.

‘We understand where he’s at, he’s on loan, those decisions will be made in the summer.

‘He’s a fantastic player, someone who we know and like.

‘But again, we need to speak about that in the summer because he’s playing on loan for his club.’

Speaking earlier this month, Inter’s CEO Beppe Marotta indicated that the club would not follow up with a permanent move for Lukaku in the summer window.

‘The loan was for one season so on June 30 regardless of how well he plays, he’ll go back to Chelsea,’ Marotta told Sky Italia.

‘This has been an unprecedented season. I’m referring of course to the World Cup. The problems we’ve experienced have been experienced by other clubs too and the players who played at the World Cup.

‘Lukaku is a case in point. [Marcelo] Brozovic isn’t the Brozovic we know. Lukaku hasn’t found the fitness he needs to play his best football. He’s still not at his best or the player we got to see in years gone by.’