Inter Milan has been insisting on a transfer fee of more than 100 million pounds, which will make Lukaku a record signing for the United Kingdom-but after Chelsea submitted the latest offer on Saturday, the Italian giants finally gave in.
The 28-year-old was a Chelsea youth player before moving to Everton and Manchester United. He is expected to sign a five-year contract that is worth approximately £212,000 a week before the bonus.
After the attempt to sign Haaland proved too difficult, the European champions moved to Lukaku, and Dortmund refused to lower the £150 million asking price for the Norwegian.
Chelsea contacted Inter Milan at the end of last month to assess their chances of signing the striker, and the Italian champions insisted that they had no intention of selling.
But Lukaku’s own transfer wishes persuaded Inter to listen to the offer-accepting an offer of around 100 million pounds is too good to refuse.
Negotiations started quickly afterwards. Chelsea first tried to include Marcos Alonso, but finally put forward a direct cash offer to resolve Thomas Tuchel’s priorities in this transfer window.
The German made it clear that he wants a top striker to challenge Manchester City this season, and Harry Kane and Sergio Aguero are also on his list of potential targets for the summer.
Even before Tuchel arrived, Harland was a long-term goal.
The Chelsea manager is increasingly frustrated by his team’s waste in front of the goal last season, determining that Olivier Giroud and Tammy Abraham are not fit to lead.
This summer, Giroud was sold to AC Milan. If the club reaches Chelsea’s £40 million valuation, Abraham will be allowed to leave.
Atlanta is one of the clubs interested in providing a route for England forwards to leave Stamford Bridge.
Tuchel also hopes to have a central defender before the transfer window closes, with Jules Comte of Seville as the main target.
