Italy star Nicolò Barella has revealed that he teases Romelu Lukaku over his first touch following the Nerazzuri's win against Sampdoria at the weekend, which moved their side up to fifth in the Serie A table.
Barella, who starred for Italy in their Euro 2020 triumph last summer, scored in the win against Sampdoria, who are in the midst of a relegation battle in Serie A. He was joined on the scoresheet by Stefan de Vrij, who opened the scoring before Joaquin Correa rounded off a comfortable win.
Lukaku has only recently returned to fitness and managed 22 minutes in the win following his goalscoring comeback in the Champions League against Viktoria Plzen last week. However, he was the subject of playful taunts by Barella, who won the 2021 Scudetto alongside Lukaku before his move to Chelsea.
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The Italy man, who has become a key figure for both club and country in recent years, joked after the match that his goal was 'how it's done'. He admitted that he meant no offence to Lukaku in making the joke amid a good team spirit under Simone Inzaghi.
He said: "I hit him after the goal, I told him that the ball was struck like that. I told him see, that's how you do a first touch! I was joking, we always play around and make fun of each other, it's a great group of lads, and we have a lot of fun.".
Lukaku has struggled for goals since winning the 2021 MVP prize in Serie A before his return to Stamford Bridge. The 29-year-old has only scored 19 club goals across 49 appearances in all competitions since the ill-fated £97 million move to return to the then European Champions a little over a year ago.
Barella, meanwhile, will feel well placed to playfully tease his teammate, having become a crucial player for Inter in recent years, having scored five goals and recorded four assists in all competitions so far this season.
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