Romelu Lukaku has rumbled a handful of Chelsea fans after leaving a comment under Raphinha's Instagram post announcing his move to Barcelona. The former Leeds United talisman was heavily linked with an exit from Elland Road this summer, courting the interest of the Blues, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona.
The west Londoners fought long and hard for the 25-year-old's signature; Todd Boehly reached an agreement with Jesse Marsch's side for Raphinha which, in principle, would have seen Chelsea sign the winger for a fee in the region of £60million. It's said that the Blues were once best placed to sign the Brazil international, but the Spanish giants bided their time and swooped in at the eleventh hour.
Despite the transfer blow still raw and Chelsea fans licking their wounds, Lukaku let his thoughts be known of his parent club missing out on the signing. In doing so, the Belgium international, who is currently on loan at Inter Milan though still under contract at Stamford Bridge until 2026, left many Blues fans unhappy.
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Under Raphinha's Instagram post announcing his move to Barcelona - and, essentially, the snubbing of Chelsea - Lukaku commented a fire emoji, implying his excitement at the deal. It was quickly screenshotted and posted on Twitter, with Chelsea fans flooding in to call the Belgian striker out.
If the prior controversy surrounding Lukaku hadn't cast enough doubt over his future in west London already, it has certainly intensified now. Especially when taking into account a thinly-aimed dig at Chelsea upon his return to Inter on loan this summer.
Speaking to the press again, he outlined his regret at leaving the Italian giants 11 months ago. Sitting alongside teammate Nicolo Barella at an event, Lukaku said, as quoted by Football Italia: "The biggest challenge of my career will be this season here. I left. It was a mistake, right Nico? [giggles].
"Now I am happy to be wearing this jersey, the team knows what we need to do, it’ll be a great challenge this season and we need to continue like this. I realised last season when I was in England, just how important Inter are in the world."
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