AS Roma are in talks with Chelsea about taking striker Romelu Lukaku on loan this season.
Negotiations are at an early stage but the Serie A club could be the solution to the situation that Lukaku, 30, and Chelsea find themselves in.
Lukaku, who spent last season on loan at Inter Milan, did not feature in Chelsea’s pre-season plans and is training away from the first team.
Roma boss Jose Mourinho managed Lukaku at both Chelsea and Manchester United.
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino was aware of the club’s plan to sell the Belgium forward when he took the job at Stamford Bridge in July.
“If the player and club’s wish is to find a solution, it’s not me, it’s them. In that case, the player and the club will meet and inform me that things changed,” Pochettino said in his news conference before Chelsea’s Premier League home game against Luton Town on Friday (kick-off 20:00 BST).
“I’m not going to move until the club or the player want to talk with me. I am here, I accept the situation that was here when I arrived.”
Chelsea are expecting to have resolved Lukaku’s future by the end of the European transfer window on September 1, with a permanent move or a loan deal that includes a significant fee or an obligation to buy.
They are not expecting the deal to be done quickly, and the option of selling Lukaku to Saudi Arabia is also being considered if there was interest as their transfer window closes on 20 September.
