English Premier League club Aston Villa is reportedly preparing a significant offer to sign Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea this summer. Lukaku, who returned to Chelsea for £97 million from Inter Milan in 2021, has struggled to find his footing at Stamford Bridge.
Despite his initial claims of having unfinished business with the club, his time at Chelsea has been turbulent. Lukaku publicly criticised former manager Thomas Tuchel and expressed his desire to return to Inter Milan during an explosive interview back in December 2021.
Over the last two seasons, Lukaku has been loaned out, first to Inter Milan and then to AS Roma. At Roma, he scored 21 goals in 47 appearances during the 2023–24 season.
The Blues are eager to offload Lukaku permanently this summer, and the 31-year-old striker is keen to reunite with Antonio Conte, his former manager at Inter Milan, who is now in charge at Napoli.
Currently, Lukaku is involved in negotiations between Chelsea and Napoli for a possible part-exchange deal. Reports suggest that Chelsea is close to agreeing to send Lukaku and young midfielder Cesare Casadei to Napoli, along with £38.5 million, in exchange for Napoli’s star striker Victor Osimhen. Osimhen is valued at €100 million (£85 million) by the Italian club.
This deal might face a challenge as Aston Villa is reportedly willing to meet Lukaku’s full release clause. According to Corriere dello Sport, Villa is ready to offer €43 million (£36 million) for Lukaku. This would allow them to secure the Belgian striker and bring him to Villa Park, where he would compete with Ollie Watkins for a starting position.
So far, Napoli has offered €25 million plus €5 million in add-ons for Lukaku. Lukaku has expressed a strong desire to join Napoli and reunite with Conte. If Napoli and Chelsea fail to reach an agreement, Lukaku may have to consider Villa’s offer.
Chelsea is reportedly running out of patience with Lukaku, who was training alone at the Cobham training ground while the rest of the squad was on a pre-season tour in the United States. The striker scored 15 goals in 44 matches in his second inning with the Blues, which was heavily affected by controversies and loan spells.
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