Romelu Lukaku said Inter was his “dream” and revealed that his relationship with Antonio Conte began when he faced the former Italy coach with Belgium.
The 26-year-old move to the Nerazzurri last summer and has since scored 14 times in 21 Serie A matches for his new club.
The Belgium international has revealed that he told Conte during a match against the Azzurri that he would “follow him” in the future.
Romelu Lukaku said Inter was his “dream” and revealed that his relationship with Antonio Conte began when he faced the former Italy coach with Belgium.
The 26-year-old move to the Nerazzurri last summer and has since scored 14 times in 21 Serie A matches for his new club.
The Belgium international has revealed that he told Conte during a match against the Azzurri that he would “follow him” in the future.
“Everything started in a friendly between Belgium and Italy,” he told Tiki Taka. “I noticed that he played with two attackers, Eder and [Graziano] Pellé, and they created a lot of chances.
“I understood that with his style of playing, I would have had a lot of chances to score and it would enhance my physical abilities.
“After the game, we talked a little and he told me that he was going to Chelsea, but it wasn’t possible for me to follow him there. So, I told him that if he went somewhere else in the future, I would follow him.”
Lukaku has been impressed by Italian football and claimed Serie A has the “best defenders in Europe”.
“It’s different,” he admitted. “The defenders in Italy are the best in Europe.
“They are tactically prepared to face the attackers. And the training sessions are also different here. They focus on the physique. The first two months were difficult, but I was always thinking about the future, what I could become.
“I am young, and I want to work even harder to improve. In England, many of the matches are very similar, but here, every game is different. You can end up not winning if you only give away one chance, like what happened in Florence and Lecce.
The forward also revealed that he was watching Inter as a child and wanted to play for the Nerazzurri.
This term he also scored in his first Derby della Madonnina and helped Inter beat Milan 2-0 at the Giuseppe Meazza.
“It was a great feeling,” he said. “To play in Italy and for Inter was a dream I had.
“The first Final I watched as a kid, was Inter-Lazio. I wanted to play for Inter, who always had great strikers like Ronaldo, [Christian] Vieri and Adriano.”