Inter are planning to negotiate a new deal with Chelsea for Romelu Lukaku and could get a helping hand from an unexpected source, rapper Jay Z.
The Belgian forward has not had a particularly positive season since returning to the Nerazzurri on loan last summer, struggling to find both fitness and form after a tough year in West London.
Lukaku has finally started to find his footing this season and scored a crucial winner in Inter’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Porto, giving the team a strong chance of progressing to the quarter-finals.
As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter will sit down with Chelsea in the coming months to discuss a new deal for Lukaku. The previous agreement cost the Milanese club around €20m total, between loan fees and wages, and they’ll look to lower costs on both fronts.
One person who could give the Nerazzurri a key boost in the talks is Jay Z. The rapper founded talent agency Roc Nation in 2008 and has a close relationship with Chelsea owner Todd Boehly.
Over the years, Roc Nation have taken plenty of top players to Boehly’s LA Dodgers, his MLB team, and they’ve even forged business partnerships together. The pair have invested millions in ‘Fanatics’, an online sportswear retailer that also works with NFTs and betting, worth around $18 billion.
In comparison, then, the figures surrounding a deal for Lukaku seem almost irrelevant, possibly giving Inter an important boost.