Chelsea will block loan moves in bid to sell Lukaku

Chelsea will turn down any loan moves for Romelu Lukaku this summer in a bid to sell the Belgium striker in a permanent deal.

They are looking to recoup some of £97.5m they paid Inter Milan for him in 2021, with their asking price believed to be about £37m as the club aims to get the 31-year-old's £325,000-a-week wages off their books.

Roma are interested in re-signing Lukaku, who spent last season on loan at the Serie A club, but are unable to meet the asking price. AC Milan and Napoli, who have just appointed Lukaku’s former manager Antonio Conte, are also reportedly interested.

But the Italian clubs have limited finances and will have to see whether Chelsea soften their stance later in the transfer window.

Napoli were also tipped to propose a swap deal for striker Victor Osimhen but Chelsea are not interested in signing the Nigerian, who is valued in excess of £100m.

Chelsea accepted a bid for Lukaku from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal last summer but the forward rejected the move.