Inter Milan chief executive Beppe Marotta has not ruled out the possibility that Romelu Lukaku could return to Chelsea next summer following the departure of Thomas Tuchel.

Marotta was keen to emphasise that the Nerazzurri are focused on the Belgian striker’s performances this season but he couldn’t say for certain whether the player will remain in Italy beyond his loan spell now Tuchel is no longer with the Blues:

“It’s fresh news. I don’t know what the effects of the change of coach will be [for Lukaku’s future]. We want to get the best performance out of Lukaku, and then at the end of the season we will sit down and talk about him with Chelsea…I don’t know if a change of coach means that his return is automatic, it’s difficult to predict today.”

Lukaku was keen on returning to Italy just a year after arriving at Stamford Bridge for a club-record £97.5m, but his loan deal has no purchase clause so the final decision on any permanent sale could come down to new head coach Graham Potter.

At the moment, it is not known whether the Englishman would be keen to work with the forward. Unlike Tuchel, Potter does favour having a focal point in attack, demonstrated by his use of Danny Welbeck at Brighton. A decision on Lukaku’s future is, though, unlikely to be made for some time.