Summary Juventus wants Lukaku and is waiting for Chelsea to make a decision, potentially involving a swap deal with Vlahovic for a reduced fee. Lukaku's move to Inter Milan fell through after speaking to Juventus behind their back, leaving Juventus as the only European club interested. Lukaku wants to move to Turin, strengthening Juventus' negotiating position, but the ball is now in Chelsea's court to decide on the deal.

Juventus are "waiting for Chelsea to decide" on a deal that could see Romelu Lukaku go to Turin and Dusan Vlahovic go the other way for a reduced fee, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

Is Romelu Lukaku leaving Chelsea?

Mauricio Pochettino has overseen a dramatic squad rebuild as the new Blues boss over the last couple of months.

Not only has he seen the arrival of players like Nicolas Jackson, Christopher Nkunku, Diego Moreira and more, but he's also seen the squad he inherited utterly gutted in the process.

According to Football Transfers, the club has sold at least £218m worth of talent so far this window, including a slew of first-team players instrumental in their Champions League triumph just two years ago.

Read the latest Chelsea transfer news HERE…

However, for all the names that have left Stamford Bridge with little fuss or trouble, Belgian international Lukaku is proving harder to shift.

The belief was that he would finally move back to Inter Milan on a permanent this summer after spending last season on loan there, only for the club to pull out of the deal after finding out he had been speaking to Juventus behind their back.

This has created a situation where the only European club seemingly willing to take the 30-year-old is the Old Lady, weakening Chelsea's already weak hand.

According to the Daily Mail, the Turin side are willing to take the former Everton man off of the Pensioners' hands, but to do so, they want the west Londoners to pay an additional £38.5m on top to send Serbian striker Vlahovic the other way.

The ball is now firmly in Chelsea's court as Juventus feel secure in knowing that Lukaku wants to come to Turin, further solidifying their negotiating position should the Blues agree to a deal, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:

"I told you that Juventus want at least €40m (£34m) to make it happen, the swap deal between Vlahovic and Lukaku, and this is Juventus' position.

"They're working through intermediaries – so it is not a direct negotiation – but intermediaries are taking care of the deal between Juventus and Chelsea. They're waiting for Chelsea to decide, so Chelsea have to decide what they want to do. If they want to proceed with Vlahovic and if they want to pay €40m (£34m) as part of this deal.

"But for Juventus they feel they can be strong in this deal because Lukaku has already said yes, so Juventus know that Lukaku wants the move and they know this deal can happen on their side. Now it depends on Chelsea."

Who was better last season, Dusan Vlahovic or Romelu Lukaku?

There is no getting away from the fact that Lukaku was a disastrous signing for Chelsea, but would Vlahovic fair any better? Did he outperform the want away Blues forward enough last season to justify his transfer to west London?

Unfortunately, it doesn't look good from a general output point of view. According to FBref, the Belgian comes out on top, scoring 0.54 goals and providing 0.33 assists per 90 to the Serbian's 0.47 goals and 0.09 assists.

It can't just be attributed to good or bad luck either, as once again, the Antwerp-born forward edges it for expected goals, producing 0.49 expected goals per 90 to the former Fiorentina star's 0.45.

Shot-creating actions is another area dominated by Lukaku as he averages an impressive 3.96 per 90 to Vlahovic's fairly poor 2.10, also per FBref.

The Juventus forward's poor form has been slammed by former Italy international Antonio Cassano, who told Calciomercato:

"He arrived with an impressive desire, but now he doesn't do anything, he doesn't even make a shot on goal."

Ultimately, Chelsea should certainly be looking to move Lukaku on as he has been an unmitigated failure at the Bridge, but sending him to Juventus whilst paying a hefty fee for Vlahovic feels like another transfer disaster just waiting to happen.

The number nine curse might yet continue in west London.