Chelsea have “stepped up” their efforts to sign Inter Milan forward Romelu Lukaku and they want the deal done by “Sunday evening”, according to reports.
The 28-year-old first joined Chelsea in 2011 from Belgian outfit Anderlecht for around £10m plus add-ons.
Lukaku failed to score from his 15 outings for the Blues, but he impressed while on loan at West Brom and Everton.
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The forward joined Everton permanently in 2014 and he went onto sign for Manchester United for £75m plus add-ons in 2017.
Lukaku moved on in 2019 to sign for Inter Milan. He has continued his goalscoring exploits in Serie A as he has netted 64 times from 95 outings for the Italians.
Chelsea are keen to bring Lukaku back to the Premier League. A deal worth around €130m is being discussed and the striker wants the move to go through.
The Athletic have reported that Chelsea have “stepped up talks” and they want the deal done by the end of this week.
The report adds: “Chelsea have stepped up talks with Inter Milan over the signing of Romelu Lukaku today in the hope of agreeing a deal as soon as possible.
“The Premier League side are optimistic a transfer will be finalised, with one source suggesting they are looking to complete the acquisition by Sunday evening.
“However, the valuation and structure of the transfer remains the issue. Chelsea have already had two offers turned down, one of which included left wing back Marcos Alonso going the other way.
“Chelsea are still hoping to entice Inter Milan with players that could go in the opposite direction to reduce the amount they have to pay. The aim is to make the package worth about £100 million.
“It is believed Inter Milan would prefer a cash-only deal however and value the 28-year-old at much more than £100 million.”
During Euro 2020, Lukaku insisted that he deserves to be considered as a world-class striker like Harry Kane:
“People have tended to describe things this way.
“When they talk about [Robert] Lewandowski, [Karim] Benzema, [Luis] Suarez, [Harry] Kane, they would say it’s world class level and with me it’s always about being in good form.
“In the last two years I think I have shown it’s not just good form.
“I belong with that group, I am at that level.”