Romelu Lukaku is nearing a return to Inter only 12 months after his €115m move to Chelsea, and his relationship with coach Thomas Tuchel has proven key.
Things between the pair kicked off well, despite the Belgian’s slow return to life in the Premier League, but things hit a turning point near the end of 2021, when Lukaku gave an incredibly misguided interview to Sky Sports Italia, where he explicitly expressed his love for Inter and their fans.
Tuchel reacted by leaving Lukaku out of the squad for a 2-2 draw against Liverpool soon after and put the German coach in an incredibly tough spot. The pair eventually saw eye to eye and the Belgian found himself back in the starting lineup the following game against Manchester City.
In late February, as it became clear that the 29-year-old’s form wouldn’t be arriving this season, Tuchel continued to defend Lukaku, suggesting that this kind of situation wasn’t too rare. “Sometimes it’s like this with strikers if they struggle a little bit with self-confidence and to find the space to get involved with a good defensive side.” He said after a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace. Despite this, it was clear that their relationship was incredibly fractured.
Eventually it became clear that Lukaku was desperate to return to Inter and after talks with the Belgian, Tuchel accepted the idea. The German coach was then instrumental in helping convince new owner Todd Boehly to sign off on the departure, allowing Inter an opening despite their financial limitations.