Firstly, it’s nice to see Romelu Lukaku doing so well at Inter Milan.
I see no reason to be bitter about what happened last summer but his performance last night as Inter reached the Europa League semi-final will undoubtedly be spun by some that it was a mistake on Manchester United’s part to let him.
Look no further than former United midfielders Paul Ince and Owen Hargreaves.
Ince has praised the transformation of Lukaku from his United days after he scored twice against Shakhtar Donetsk in a 5-0 win.
‘He looks fit,’ Ince claimed on BT Sport (quoted by Daily Mail). ‘At Manchester United he looked like he couldn’t run around the park. He looks like a different animal. We know he can finish, but wow.
‘So many players come to England and they struggle. Lukaku didn’t struggle but I just felt under [Jose] Mourinho he wasn’t happy. The most important thing is if you’re happy you’ll fit in.’
Hargreaves believes Lukaku was being weighed down during his time at Old Trafford.
‘At 27 Lukaku looks like he’s the perfect age,’ Hargreaves added. ‘What a pair Lukaku and Martinez are.
‘I think Lukaku got a raw deal at United. He almost played like he was carrying that burden but now he’s in a place where he’s playing at a really high level.
‘When you have a front two that explosive it takes a lot of pressure off the team.’
But we must look at the deal that took Lukaku to Inter last summer and see it for what it was.
Lukaku didn’t fit the system Ole Gunnar Solskjaer plays and he requested a move. Reflecting back a year on, it’s worked out for all parties involved.
The Belgian was the most clinical striker we had but we’ve looked better without him.
Weigh up the positives and negatives and the emergence of Mason Greenwood will shine brightest.
Moreover, the striker was respectful of his former club when asked about the Reds crashing out of the Europa League semi-finals on Sunday night.
Read more: Lukaku discusses Manchester United in pitch-side interview after Inter reach Europa League final
