Former Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku’s second season at Napoli has taken a turn for the worse

Romelu Lukaku’s disjointed season at Napoli looks to have reached breaking point after the striker’s decision to defy the Serie A champions.

The ex-Manchester United striker has endured a nightmare campaign in Naples with much of his season lost due to the severe hamstring injury he suffered last summer. Following the setback, Lukaku wrote in an Instagram story: “I really appreciate the support from you guys. S*** happens, and injuries are part of the game, but by the grace of God, I feel good, and I’m always positive-minded no matter what. See you soon.”

But Lukaku has struggled to keep that promise. After five months out, the 32-year-old – who also tragically lost his father last September – made his return in January but has played just 64 minutes of football since then.

Yet to start a game this season, the Belgium international finally made his return on January in a 3-0 loss to Juventus. The forward then scored an emotional winner against Verona in February, his first Serie A goal in eight months.

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“These have been difficult months, personally,” he said following that match. “Football has given me so much, but losing my father the way I did was tough to handle. But I keep going for my children, for my brother, and for Napoli. This club has given me a lot. I was dead before coming here.”

After the game, Conte – who also worked with the striker at Chelsea and Inter Milan – discussed the sympathy he and his players have for the Belgian after what he’s been through and insisted he’ll return to his previous form with time.

The Italian said: “Lukaku had such a serious injury, I know all too well how much he has suffered with this situation, as he wants to help Napoli and help me, for the rapport that we have. We are cuddling him and working hard, he is not yet the player that we know, but he’s getting there. This goal will give him confidence, the World Cup is coming up, I’d love for both him and Kevin De Bruyne to play in it.”

Lukaku has since suffered hip inflammation that caused him to withdraw from international duty earlier this month and was expected to return to Italy for further assessment following his latest setback, but cracks began to appear in the relationship with Napoli after the striker opted to remain in his hometown of Antwerp to treat his injury. The decision to go directly against his club’s order could have dire consequences for Lukaku who faces being banished from Antonio Conte’s for the rest of the season, according to La Repubblica.

The reigning league champions issued a firm statement regarding the striker’s absence as they promised to “consider appropriate disciplinary action, as well as to determine whether the player will continue to train with the squad for an indefinite period.”

Amid his struggles this season, Lukaku took to social media to explain the personal and professional strain that has plagued his campaign, as he said: “This season has been a lot for me, from dealing with the injury and the personal loss. I know there has been a lot of noise about my situation in the last few days and it’s important to clarify the whole situation.

“The truth is the last few weeks I wasn’t feeling right physically and I had it checked out while I was in Belgium and it showed me that there was an inflammation and liquid on my hip flexor muscle next to my scar tissue. It is the second problem I had since coming back early November.

“I chose to do the rehab in Belgium so I can help the team when called upon. There’s nothing I would love more than to do than play and win with my team. But right now I have to make sure I am 100% because I haven’t been recently and it took a toll mentally.

“It’s been a lot this year. But in the end, I will get there and help Napoli and the national team to their respective objectives when called upon. That’s all I want.”

Expected to return to Naples next week, another report from the media outlet states that Lukaku is set to meet with Conte and sporting director Giovanni Manna for crunch talks.

Viewing Lukaku’s refusal to come back to Italy as a breach of protocol, Manna had confirmed the forward will face “consequences” for disregarding club orders. Speaking before their 1-0 win over AC Milan last week, Manna said: “Romelu went to Belgium for international duty, had a slight setback with an injury and preferred to stay there to train, contrary to what we had asked.

“No one would have stopped him from working with his doctors, but we wanted to discuss it in Naples, and that didn’t happen. We are unhappy about it. The integrity, respect, and value of the group are above all else.

“Talking about it now is superfluous, because Romelu is not here. He is working in Belgium. I think and hope he will return within a week. But he knows there will be consequences.”

Since leaving Old Trafford in 2019 after signing for the club in a £90million deal, Lukaku has won two Serie A titles with Inter Milan and Napoli.

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