Romelu Lukaku has agreed a three year contract with Napoli, but the Serie A club don’t want to pay the £29.5m Chelsea want according to reports in Italy.
Lukaku returned to Stamford Bridge in 2021 for just shy of £100m from Inter Milan, and despite a positive start the move has been nothing short of a disaster.
The Belgium international has spent the last two seasons back on loan in Italy at Inter and Roma, and he’s a player the Blues are desperate to offload this summer.
Lukaku agrees three year contract with Napoli
Before Lukaku left to join Roma last summer Chelsea inserted a £38m exit clause into his contract, which they expect any potential suitors to pay in full.
Outgoings at the club have been slow this summer, partly down to there being two major international tournament, but now those are done things should start to speed up.
Lukaku is attracting interest from Napoli and clubs in the Saudi Pro League, but the 31-year-old’s preference is reportedly a reunion with Antonio Conte in Naples.
Any move to Napoli will likely depend on the departure of Victor Osimhen, who is believed to want to join French giants Paris Saint Germain.
Italian outlet Di Marzio have reported that Lukaku has agreed a three year deal with Napoli worth £5m per year plus bonuses, but they need to agree a deal with Chelsea, who want £29.5m for the striker, with Napoli not prepared to pay that much.
Chelsea shouldn’t be accepting anything less than the exit clause and once Osimhen leaves the Serie A side will have the money to pay the clause.
The Blues are still looking to bring a striker in and have been linked with the likes of Samu Omorodion and Jonathan David, but any move is unlikely to take place until after pre-season when Enzo Maresca has had time to assess Marc Guiu and see how Christopher Nkunku does in the number nine position.
