Chelsea look for breakthrough in Romelu Lukaku talks with Inter Milan hoping for cash-only deal
Chelsea want to sell Tammy Abraham to fund the Lukaku deal with Atalanta, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Southampton all interested in the striker
Chelsea hope to find a breakthrough in their bid to re-sign Romelu Lukaku over the weekend after stepping up talks with Inter Milan on Friday.
Inter still prefer a cash-only deal for Lukaku, with Chelsea willing to offer a number of players as part of a bid, but the clubs have been negotiating with a view to finding a solution that suits all parties.
Sources were not putting a timescale on how long the negotiations could take, but it is believed both clubs hoped to find common ground over the weekend with Inter valuing Lukaku at around £100million.
Lukaku trained with Inter on Friday and manager Simone Inzaghi is keen to receive clarity over whether or not he will have his star player for the Serie A season.
If Inter agree to sell Lukaku to Chelsea, then Izaghi wants as long as possible to sign a replacement, most likely Atalanta’s Duvan Zapata, and work with him before Inter kick off their Serie A campaign against Genoa on August 21.
Chelsea face Villarreal in the Uefa Super Cup next Wednesday and a return to the club ahead of that fixture for Lukaku would be ironic given his last appearance for the Blues was in the same competition in 2013.
Lukaku missed the decisive penalty in the shootout, which handed Bayern Munich victory, and four days later former manager Jose Mourinho sanctioned the Belgian’s permanent move to Everton.
The move for Lukaku has pushed Tammy Abraham closer towards the Chelsea exit door, although the academy graduate will not be pressured into a decision over his future.
Atalanta view Abraham as the perfect replacement for Zapata, should he move to Inter to take over from Lukaku, but the 23-year-old will not be forced to the Italian club simply to complete what would represent a convenient sequence of events for Chelsea.
As first revealed by Telegraph Sport, Arsenal hold a serious interest in Abraham who had also been on Aston Villa’s list of targets before the Midlands club signed Danny Ings.
Abraham was a boyhood Arsenal fan and a move to the Emirates would appear to be an attractive proposition, although Arsenal are likely to need to sell players to fund a permanent move.
Flush with cash from the sale of defender Cristian Romero to Tottenham Hotspur and the £34million fee they expect to receive from a Zapata sale to Inter, Atalanta are looking to steal a march on their rivals for Abraham by making a bid for him.
But Abraham is unlikely to make any hasty decisions, with the striker merry-go-round about to swing into action with Lukaku close to sealing his return to Chelsea, Manchester City still hoping to sign Harry Kane and Ings moving to Villa - as well as Lionel Messi’s bombshell exit from Barcelona.
Chelsea’s preference is to sell Abraham, to help fund the Lukaku deal, rather than loaning him out again.
In line with club policy, Chelsea would also ideally want Abraham to sign a contract extension to go out on loan, something he is likely to be reluctant to agree to at this stage.
Southampton have joined the long list of clubs interested in Abraham, but it remains to be seen whether or not they would be an attractive option to a striker who has played for England and in the Champions League.
Abraham has been Chelsea’s top scorer in each of the last two seasons, despite losing his place in the team under latest head coach Thomas Tuchel.
Despite his relegation, Abraham has remained professional and supportive of his team-mates and his attitude has impressed those in and around Chelsea.
With two years remaining on his contract, Chelsea are well aware that this may be the final summer they can recoup serious money for Abraham and the player is determined to start playing regular first-team football again.
Chelsea look for breakthrough in Romelu Lukaku talks with Inter Milan hoping for cash-only deal (telegraph.co.uk)
