ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Lukaku looks like he's forgotten to play football

ALVISE CAGNAZZO: Romelu Lukaku looks like he’s forgotten to play football in Milan – his return to Italy has been a total failure and it will be liberation for Inter when he returns to Chelsea

• Romelu Lukaku is going though the toughest moment of his career at Inter Milan
• Lukaku has starred for Belgium but has been a shadow of himself at club level
• The forward will become an issue for Chelsea when he returns in the summer  

Romelu Lukaku’s return to Italy has been a total failure – and when he returns too Chelsea at the end of the season it will be a liberation for Inter Milan. The Belgium forward looks like he’s forgotten to play football in Milan and appears fragile and defenceless – never giving supporters satisfaction at the San Siro. 

The striker is currently facing the worst moment of his career – a tougher period than the one he experienced in his final season at Manchester United before his initial move to Inter.

His physical strength appears to have diminished and his reactions have worsened considerably. Lukaku is now a shadow of the player Chelsea paid Inter over £98million on to bring back to the club.

At Inter, Lukaku now appears a fragile figure who is dominated by the opposition defenders. Against Fiorentina on Saturday, he looked as though he was playing on a skating rink, with the striker slipping at key moments in front of goal, while he missed an open goal from six yards in the second half. Lukaku has lost his decisiveness and is now too cautious in the big moments.

Lukaku came into the match against Fiorentina on a high, after scoring four goals on international duty with Belgium. He first scored a hat-trick against Sweden, before finding the net again against Germany.

Romelu Lukaku is currently going through the worst moment of his career at Inter Milan

The forward has scored three times in the league and looks a shadow of his former self

The Belgian forward appears to have diminished as a player and is dominated by opponents

In two matches for Belgium, Lukaku had scored more than the three he has managed for Inter in Serie A this season.

The match against Fiorentina had offered Lukaku a chance to carry his form for the national team back over to club level, presenting an opportunity to force his way back into Simone Inzaghi’s team. Instead, Lukaku’s performance merely confirmed his ongoing struggles for form.

Lukaku is currently a major problem for Inter, but he will become a bigger one for Chelsea when he returns to west London in the summer. The Blues will have to decide what the future holds for the forward after a disastrous loan season away from the club – with a potential sale made tougher by Lukaku turning 30 in May.

Inter are a fragile team themselves, with the 1-0 loss to Fiorentina marking their fourth defeats in their last five matches in Serie A. Inzaghi’s side have now lost 10 times in the league this season. 

The team is a mess at the moment and Lukaku is only adding to their issues, when previously he would have been leading them though the tough moments.

Inter’s problems are not just in attack, with the defence having conceded 32 goals in 28 Serie A matches. Too many for a team that began the season with the aspiration to win back the Scudetto. Instead, Inter now have a fight on their hands to remain in the top four in the table and secure Champions League qualification for next season.

Inter suffered their fourth defeat in five matches after losing 1-0 to Fiorentina on Saturday

Lukaku will leave Inter in the summer and head back to Chelsea following a disastrous loan

The three consecutive defeats at the hands of Spezia, Juventus and Fiorentina have demonstrated the problems of a team with a centre forward who is going through an identity crisis, with Inter having scored just one goal in those matches.

Lukaku, who is the highest paid player in Serie A, has scored just three times in his 16 appearances in the league this campaign. The Belgian forward, who has suffered from injuries this season, has been unable to repay Inter’s trust after they moved to bring him back to the club on loan from Chelsea.

He remains brilliant when he plays with his national team, but he cannot produce the same form with Inter. There is currently no chance Lukaku will remain with Inter next season.

Lukaku will return to London with Inter CEO Giuseppe Marotta having already made the decision not to pursue a permanent move for the striker in the summer. His loan has been a major disappointment for Inter and the club will not commit extra funds to buy him outright.

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