Chelsea's club-record flop Romelu Lukaku is willing to take a huge financial hit worth millions of pounds to seal a return to Inter Milan, according to a new report.
Lukaku thrived during his two years on the books at Inter but has struggled since the Blues shelled out £97.5million to bring the Belgian striker back to Stamford Bridge. The 29-year-old netted just eight Premier League goals this year and has caused Thomas Thomas major issues with some ill-judged comments in the media.
The former Manchester United forward found himself in and out of Chelsea's starting line-up under Tuchel and has made no secret of his desire to return to Inter - and a new report from The Daily Mail has revealed just how far Lukaku would be willing to go to seal a temporary return to the San Siro.
The report claims that Inter - who are 'exploring the possibility' of bringing Lukaku back to the club on loan - believe the striker would be open to taking a major pay-cut to leave west London.
It's understood that Lukaku's net earnings at Inter were in the region of £6.4million a year, which translates to roughly £125,000 a week. It's claimed that Lukaku, who now nets a cool £3m more than that after taxes due to the lucrative deal he penned with the Blues last summer, is 'prepared' to accept a salary similar to the one he received during his previous spell with Inter if it will help seal a return to Milan.
Inter's cash issues means they are restricted to negotiating a loan switch rather than a permanent one. However, Inter are 'yet to make contact' with the Stamford Bridge hierarchy over any potential deal for Lukaku, who still has four years left to run on his current Chelsea deal.
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Although Tuchel 'might jump at the chance' to replace Lukaku, it remains to be seen if the new Blues hierarchy - led by LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly - will be willing to cut their losses on the club's record signing.
Boehly and his consortium's £4.25bn takeover of Chelsea was finally confirmed last week, meaning the Londoners are able to compete in the transfer market once again after months of restrictions. And while a decision over Lukaku's long-term future is likely to be made this summer, the first item on Boehly's agenda is set to be rebuilding the Blues defence.
Contract rebel Antonio Rudiger has already confirmed that he is quitting the club to join Real Madrid this summer, while Andreas Christensen is also expected to depart Stamford Bridge at the end of the month when his deal expires, leaving Tuchel and the Blues short of bodies at the back.
