Lukaku has chosen not to wear Inter's shirt. He made that decision for himself. But it is at least curious that until June 13, three days after the final in Istanbul, he had not communicated his decision to Inter. Perhaps Lukaku had issues with Simone Inzaghi and was already negotiating with other clubs. However, Romelu wrote this on Instagram to console the Inter fans 72 hours after the defeat against City: "It's a shitty feeling for all of us who love this beautiful club... But Inter still has hunger and we will come back to fight with the hope of one day reaching that moment when history is written."
As per La Gazzetta dello Sport in this morning's decision: the truth is that the Belgian played on two tables, as long as he could. He dribbled as long as there was a chance. Then, in mid-July, he had to come out into the open. With Inter. With his (now former) teammates. With Roc Nation, which had set up a permanent deal with Inter and then was forced to bid farewell to its former poster boy. The one for whom, just three months before, it had launched a publicity campaign in support of the racism he suffered in Turin in the Italian Cup. Inter understood this later - Lukaku was talking to at least two other clubs well before the Champions League final. Probably even before the two semifinals with Milan.
With which clubs? With Juventus, of course, because of the esteem of Massimiliano Allegri. And also with Milan. The reasons can be debated at length. Certainly, there was never any love lost between Lukaku and Inzaghi. Truth be told, more from the side of the Belgian than from the side of the coach, who, when planning for 2023-24, had placed Big Rom at the top of his market desires. Romelu was complaining about the coach already at the beginning of 2023, unhappy with a role that didn't allow him to get into form. Then came the phase of fixed alternation with Dzeko.
Lukaku was convinced that sooner or later, he would be the one to take the most important stage, namely the Champions League. And perhaps he must have interpreted more than one conversation he had with Inzaghi over the last two months of the season in this way. Istanbul is the drop. Everything happens in the days before the final. On Saturday, June 3, Inter plays their last league game in Turin. Lukaku plays 90 minutes and understands that in Istanbul, he will only be on the bench. And then two things happen. The first, the request for additional rest compared to his teammates, because he was feeling fatigue. The second: in the week leading up to June 10, Lukaku trains without the right intensity, with strange attitudes according to those who were with him in Appiano Gentile in those days.
