By all accounts, Romelu Lukaku seems to be doing well at Inter. The Italian weather seems to suit him, and he appears motivated and hungry again (pun intended).
Will he be a huge success at his new club? Maybe. He started well in pre-season, and he scored in his Serie A debut against mighty Lecce, so all signs point towards him being a darling of San Siro. It makes you wonder why he wasn’t equally motivated and enthusiastic when he was at Man United, where he spent most of his time looking like a demoralised salmon.
Will he prove his doubters and detractors at Old Trafford wrong? Who knows? He started brightly enough, but soon faded away. He seemed half-hearted whenever he gets his precious minutes on the pitch.
United thought they bought a warrior, a lion, a proper gladiator who would lead the line and ignite their title challenge. Instead, they got a rather useless half-footballer, half-battering ram with an atrocious first touch and a penchant for one too many doner kebabs.
Lukaku is Gone but still Sore
Like a jilted lover, Lukaku seems unable to stop talking about Manchester United. He’s been making all kinds of noises about he was unfairly treated during his underwhelming stint at Old Trafford.
He’s obviously very sore about being criticised by United legends Gary Neville and Gary Pallister. The two Gary’s apparently made rather pointed references about him being overweight, and Lukaku went a-Twittering to prove otherwise.
Football neutrals will wish Lukaku well at Inter Milan because it’s always a delight to watch good footballers do well and entertain their legions of fans. To do precisely that, Lukaku must move on and stop talking about his supposed nightmare at the Theatre of Dreams.
Maybe he wasn’t a United type of player. Maybe his more physical approach is more suited to the bottom half of the Premier League table. Or maybe his game is more suited to the Italian league (time will tell) or La Liga (it’s possible) or even the Bundesliga (he’s still young enough to look into this option).
Maybe the Italian sojourn will do him a world of good. Maybe he’ll be rejuvenated and he will play the best football of his career. Maybe the arrival of his mate Alexis Sanchez will spark him back to life.
Or maybe he’ll prove to all of us how rubbish a footballer he actually is.
Get the popcorn out, the show is beginning…