Following the news that Romelu Lukaku’s move to Inter is off and that he could instead be poised to join Juventus, media outlets in Italy have begun to question the benefits signing the 30-year-old would bring the Bianconeri.
Lukaku is set to leave Chelsea this summer and had looked set to return to Inter on a permanent basis, but discoveries over the weekend revealed that the Belgian international had also been in discussion with Juve, prompting Inter to walk away from the idea of bringing him back to San Siro.
It is widely believed that Chelsea will listen to offers around €40m to sell Lukaku this summer, and given that he is not part of Mauricio Pochettino’s plans for next season, the club would like to strike a deal as quickly as possible.
Juventus are said to be keen on the idea of bringing in Lukaku, but only if they are able to shift Dusan Vlahovic first, who is valued in the region of €70m-€80m.
Whilst that trade off would bring Juve an immediate capital gain, Tuttosport points out that the Old Lady would have to pay Lukaku much more than they would do with Vlahovic. In fact, Lukaku currently earns €3.5m more than Vlahovic in terms of net wages.
La Gazzetta dello Sport also highlight the fact that Vlahovic has not yet realised his full potential in a Juventus shirt.
What’s more is that in two years time, Lukaku, aged 30, will likely have decreased in terms of market value, whilst Vlahovic, 23, could still improve and be worth even more a few years down the line if he rediscovers his form.
La Gazzetta also question who is behind the decision to go after Lukaku.
Juve have recently unveiled Cristiano Giuntoli as their new sporting director, who had been credited with rejuvenating the Napoli squad before their Scudetto-winning campaign in 2022-23. However, Sunday’s article suggests that Lukaku fits the mould of a Massimilano Allegri signing, pointing at some of his recent acquisitions over the last few seasons.
The pink paper asserts that under Giuntoli’s leadership, Juve should be targeting exciting, young emerging talents who could bring in decent capital gains in future seasons, but Lukaku doesn’t appear to fit that description.
Both Gazzetta and Il Corriere question whether swapping a 23-year-old for a 30-year-old is the right decision and whether bringing in Giuntoli was really necessary if they are to immediately go against his strategy.