Discussing his challenging season at Chelsea, Romelu Lukaku vows to demonstrate his capabilities while on loan at Inter Milan, aiming to silence his critics.
The Belgian striker has returned to Serie A giants Inter Milan on loan, just a year after joining Chelsea for a massive £97.5 million fee and failing to replicate his previous form.
In an interview with DAZN, as reported by Football Italia, Lukaku expressed his desire for ‘revenge’ at Chelsea after leaving the club as a young player, admitting that he didn’t become the ‘hero’ at Stamford Bridge as he had anticipated.
He stated, “The season at Chelsea gave me extra motivation to do even better than before. I think in one year everyone has forgotten about the things I am capable of doing on the pitch.
“That is a kind of anger that I have inside me. That now the team has it too, which didn’t win last year, all together we hope to do better and bring something home.
Reflecting on his time at Chelsea, Lukaku cited multiple factors that went wrong, explaining, “So many things. I think before, when I left, I wanted to take revenge at Chelsea because when I was young it was my team for 11 years.
“I had the opportunity to go back there and thought I would be a hero, but that wasn’t the case. In March, when I heard there was an opportunity to come back here, slowly I didn’t say anything, but toward the end of the season we did a very good job with the club and I was able to come back here.
“I make reflections only at the end of the season, so after the last game I put myself to think what my situation was. I saw that as a player with Inter I did well, the season at Chelsea was difficult. I had no doubts, that’s why I made the decision to come back here.”
Lukaku, who was at Chelsea from 2011 to 2014, faced a tough spell at Manchester United before returning to top form during a two-year stint at Inter Milan, where he played a crucial role in securing the title by scoring 24 league goals in 36 Serie A matches in his second season at the San Siro.
Following a club-record move to Chelsea, Lukaku scored just 15 goals in 44 appearances. Lukaku also emphasized that he is not concerned with being the top scorer in Serie A; instead, his primary focus is to lead Inter Milan to reclaim the title after missing out to city rivals AC Milan in the previous season.