Chelsea have been urged to beat Barcelona to the signing of Robert Lewandowski this summer, with Romelu Lukaku edging ever close to an exit. The Belgium international's homecoming has cast doubt over his future in west London, with several other factors also fuelling a case for the striker's exit. The infamous interview he gave to Sky Italia, his agent propelled an exit and a seven-touch display against Crystal Palace.
He's struggled to acclimatise to the Premier League upon his return to Stamford Bridge, finding the net 17 times in 44 appearances this season. Lukaku's misfortune in front of goal has cast doubt over his future, though he has still been able to court the interest of several top-flight European clubs.
The Belgian has been linked with moves to Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Tottenham. But, the Chelsea striker has reportedly agreed personal terms with the Italian giants ahead of a potential loan return to the Serie A this summer.
READ MORE: Todd Boehly Chelsea takeover agreement gives Thomas Tuchel La Liga transfer mission green light
football.london understands that Lukaku has asked his lawyer to check the possibility of a possible return to the San Siro, less than 12 months after making the move from Milan to London. So, with his departure reportedly on the horizon, former Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips believes that the Blues should swoop in and do what it takes to lure Lewandowski away from Barcelona.
Speaking to Genting Casino, Wright-Phillips said: "Robert Lewandowski would be the perfect replacement for Romelu Lukaku if Lukaku does leave. No matter what team he plays in, he always scores goals. Chelsea would just have to make sure they play to his strengths in order to make it work."
Lewandowski, who sees his contract at the Allianz Arena expire at the end of next season, has been heavily linked with a move away from Bayern Munich this summer and the Catalan side are his favoured destination, according to the Guardian. The 33-year-old featured 34 times for the German giants in the Bundesliga this season, directly contributing to 39 goals.
Regardless of whether Chelsea signed a new striker or not, Thomas Tuchel is keen to bolster his strike force next season. But, it's believed that the Belgian's future must be resolved first in order for the Blues to acquire Lewandowski, the Guardian claim.
Speaking on areas of improvement the Blues need to nurse next season, the German boss said: "If we stick to the group, then we will try to solve it with these players. Is it necessary to bring more offensive players around the box to create more distractions, to create more space for each other? We will ask that question.
"Can we do better in the structure? Can we push the players more? Did we rotate too much? Let's see. There are a lot of options. The numbers we produce from our offensive players don't allow us to overperform, and we need overperformance if we want to be nearer to the top two teams.
"I am not pointing fingers, I am not blaming anybody, but we need overperformance from everybody. It's not over performance if we have only single figures in scoring and assisting."
