Inter Milan are reportedly preparing to approach Chelsea with an improved bid for Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku.
Following a difficult stint at Manchester United, Lukaku reignited his career at San Siro under Antonio Conte, scoring 24 goals en route to the 2020-21 Serie A title.
Chelsea subsequently took a punt on their former youngster, bringing him back to West London in a £97.5m deal in 2021, but the move did not work out as intended for either party.
After publicly voicing his displeasure with Thomas Tuchel's system and announcing his desire to return to Inter, Lukaku's wish was granted last summer, but only on a season-long loan due to the Nerazzurri's financial problems.
The 30-year-old helped himself to 14 goals and seven assists under Simone Inzaghi last term but failed to hit his previous heights, and the Lautaro Martinez-Edin Dzeko pairing was normally preferred during Inter's run to the Champions League final.
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However, with Dzeko departing for Fenerbahce, Inter are keen to bring Lukaku back to San Siro permanently, as the ex-Everton man seemingly has no future at Chelsea under Mauricio Pochettino.
Inter are already believed to have failed with an offer of £23m for Lukaku, but according to The Times, the Nerazzurri are now lining up an improved bid for the marksman.
It is unclear how much Inter are willing to put on the table, but the report adds that Chelsea are holding out for a £40m sum and currently do not see the discussions as "serious".
Lukaku is due to return to Cobham for pre-season training on Wednesday and is likely to hold crunch talks with Pochettino over his future, but he is supposedly keen to make his exit this week either way.
The Belgium international still has three years left to run on his deal with Chelsea, who have apparently also been contacted by Juventus over the possibility of a deal for the out-of-favour attacker.
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Juve are rumoured to have offered Chelsea the chance to sign Dusan Vlahovic in a part-exchange deal for Lukaku, who has also been the subject of interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia and could reportedly be open to switching to the Middle East after initially ruling out such a move.
Lukaku left Chelsea for the first time in 2013 having failed to score in 15 appearances, and he has since registered 15 goals and two assists in 44 games since returning to the English capital two years ago.
The Blues have already bolstered their attacking ranks this summer with the signings of Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson from RB Leipzig and Villarreal respectively, and Lukaku could be one of several attackers to head for the exit door in the coming weeks, following in the footsteps of new Arsenal man Kai Havertz.
Christian Pulisic is understood to be on the brink of joining AC Milan, while David Datro Fofana is expected to sign for Champions League-competing Union Berlin on loan.
Callum Hudson-Odoi, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Hakim Ziyech are also in the departure lounge, but the latter's proposed move to Al-Nassr apparently collapsed due to a failed medical.
Ben Knapton
