Romelu Lukaku will leave Chelsea if he does not regain his place at the club’s main striker, according to Jamie Carragher.
The Belgian international has had to accept a reduced role at Stamford Bridge over recent weeks, with Thomas Tuchel often preferring to use the versatile Kai Havertz as his chief central attacking option.
And such a decision has paid off, with Havertz netting six goals in his last seven matches across all competitions, taking his impressive tally to four in three with a sensational late effort to down Newcastle in the Premier League on Sunday.
Lukaku, by contrast, has had to make do with second-half cameos of late, with his only goal since the Club World Cup triumph in Abu Dhabi coming in the FA Cup fifth-round victory over Championship side Luton.
It is not the sort of situation that the 28-year-old would have envisaged after returning to Chelsea from Inter Milan in a club-record £97.5million transfer last summer and scoring four times in as many outings to begin his second stint.
Lukaku professed his continued love for Inter during an explosive Sky Italia interview that aired in December and recent reports from Italy have continued to link the player with a potential return to the San Siro in future.
And Carragher believes that Lukaku’s exit from Chelsea is inevitable if he does not regain his place from Havertz moving forward.
“If this situation continues with Havertz as the main striker, I think Lukaku will be out next season,” Carragher said on Sky Sports. “I think he will have to move on.
“I don’t think he is a guy you can have on the bench and use him sporadically. I think he will be moving on.”
