Romelu Lukaku has labelled Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte as "the best manager in the world" as speculation over the Manchester United striker's future continues to grow.
Lukaku, 26, would cost interested clubs £80m to buy but, despite the hefty fee, the Belgium international has been linked with a move to Inter who appointed former Chelsea manager Conte as their new coach in late May.
Conte tried and failed to sign Lukaku in the summer of 2017 while manager of Chelsea after the striker opted to join United instead.
But Lukaku is now weighing up his options - and was more than happy to praise Conte as he talked to reporters about his future following Belgium's Euro 2020 qualifying win over Scotland on Tuesday night.
"I was always a big fan of the Italian league. People close to me, they know I have two leagues that I always dreamed about - the English league and Serie A," Lukaku told Sport Mediaset.
"So, for me, Serie A is my favourite league as well.
"The transfer of [Cristiano] Ronaldo, the Italian league is now coming back. Now Antonio Conte going to Inter Milan, which is really good because he is, to me, the best manager in the world.
"And then you have Maurizio Sarri going to Juventus, [Carlo] Ancelotti at Napoli so I think Serie A will be really exciting next year. I'm really happy for Italian football."
He added: "I'm not somebody who likes to talk about my personal relationships with managers because I'm a player of Manchester United. I'm under contract and I have to respect my club.
"If something happens, I think the teams and my agent have to do the talking. I just make my decision and stay outside."
