At the end of March, Romelu Lukaku let an ultimatum expire and simply stayed in his home country. Now, the striker—who has been virtually non-existent this season—has returned to SSC Napoli.
Following the acrimonious departure of Victor Osimhen, the team’s 2023 championship guarantee, Napoli bolstered their squad with Romelu Lukaku in the summer of 2024. A masterstroke, as the Belgian powerhouse contributed 14 goals and many other standout performances in 36 Serie A matches during the 2024–25 season, propelling the southern Italians back to the top of Italian soccer.
As in the case of Osimhen, who had moved to Galatasaray at the time, the relationship between the striker and the club soured once again. This was also because, following a protracted and persistent thigh injury that limited him to just six competitive matches and a total of 64 minutes (one goal) in the SSC jersey this season—which is already drawing to a close—Lukaku simply did not return to Naples and let an ultimatum expire.
“The coach will decide”
However, Lukaku has now been back with the Neapolitans since Tuesday—including team training.
However, this is by no means a guarantee that the 32-year-old striker and Belgian World Cup player will see playing time in the final four Serie A matchdays or fulfill his contract, which runs until next year, in the long term. Ultimately, that is solely up to coach Antonio Conte and the club’s management, led by the typically outspoken president Aurelio de Laurentiis, to decide.
In a brief statement back in March, the historic club from Campania had already announced “that the player had not complied with the request to resume training” and threatened consequences for the player, who had simply remained in his Belgian hometown of Antwerp with his own support staff: “The club reserves the right to consider initiating appropriate disciplinary measures as well as suspending the player’s participation in the team indefinitely.”
Lukaku’s response at the time on social media: “There’s nothing I’d rather do than play for my team and win. But right now, I have to make sure I’m 100 percent fit. I haven’t been lately—and that’s taken a mental toll.” And that’s precisely what made the decision to stay in Belgium indispensable.
What happens next? Speaking to DAZN, Lukaku’s agent Federico Pastorello was, unsurprisingly, cautious—after all, the ball is now in the court of the bosses in Naples: “I know both of them very well; they live and breathe soccer with great passion.” A joint meeting should now quickly provide clarity, ideally resolve the differences, and bring the internal atmosphere back down to normal. “Lukaku is back as expected and—now that he’s in better shape—is resuming training with the team. Afterward, the coach will decide what to do with Romelu.”
