“Has 103 kg to carry on his shoulders,” Romelu Lukaku’s overweight responsible for him being benched in Champions League clash, says Inter Milan CEO

Romelu Lukaku has been struggling with injuries since joining Inter Milan on loan from Chelsea.

“Has 103 kg to carry on his shoulders,” Romelu Lukaku’s overweight responsible for him being benched in Champions League clash, says Inter Milan CEO

Romelu Lukaku was benched against Porto due to overweight. Image via Instagram

Italian club Inter Milan faced Porto in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 on February 23. Inter’s star striker Romelu Lukaku has been benched in the crucial match, meanwhile, Inter Milan CEO Beppe Marotta gave the actual reason for his absence from the starting 11. According to Marotta, Lukaku is not completely fit, and is apparently ‘overweight.’ Reports from Italy stated that Lukaku was expected to start in the Round-of-16 clash. Despite scoring a penalty goal in Inter Milan’s last match against Udinese, after returning from multiple injuries, Lukaku was on the bench.

“Why Lukaku on the bench? Romelu has 103 kg to carry on his shoulders, he must be physically fit. It’s not yet 100% fit, he’s getting back to the best form”. Marotta stated in a pre-match interview. He shared his confidence in the Belgian striker, claiming he will perform well later in the season. “We expect Romelu to do great things in the second part of the season”.

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Marotta also stated that the World Cup in 2022 also disrupted his momentum, as he was unfit and ridden with injuries at that time. “Another influence in this anomalous season is represented by the World Cup that took place. It also influenced the recovery of other players. There was psychophysical involvement and some players were affected, others less so. Lukaku participated in the World Cup. He hasn’t given what he could and wanted to Inter so far but now we’ll find him as a true protagonist in the season finale, I’m sure.”

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Romelu Lukaku’s journey since leaving Everton

Lukaku, Inter Milan, Lautaro Martinez
Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez formed a deadly partnership in Inter Milan. Image via Twitter.

Romelu Lukaku’s breakthrough season came in 2014 after Everton signed him for a club-record fee of £28 million from West Bromwich Albion. Lukaku played 166 matches for Everton, with 87 goals and providing 29 assists. His striking abilities led English giants Manchester United to sign the Belgian striker for a reported fee of £ 75 million in 2017. He played 96 matches with United, scoring 42 goals and providing 13 assists.

Romelu Lukaku joined Italian giants Inter Milan in 2019 for a club-record fee of €80 million. He made his debut for Inter on 26 August against Lecce in Serie A. Lukaku quickly settled into the first-team squad of Inter, forming a deadly partnership with Argentine forward Lautaro Martinez. He went on to play 95 matches with Inter, scoring 64 goals and assisting 16 times.

Lukaku won the Italian Super Cup and the Player of the Year award in the 2019/20 season with Inter Milan, before Chelsea signed him for a club record fee at that time of £97.5 million in 2021. Lukaku only managed to play 59 games, scoring 15 goals and providing 3 assists, before Chelsea loaned out the striker to Inter Milan in 2022. Since joining Inter on loan, Lukaku has appeared in 11 matches, scoring 2 goals for the Italian Giants.

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