Lukaku felt 'scapegoated' at Man United
Manchester United allowed Romelu Lukaku to join Inter and the striker has hit out at the way he was treated at Old Trafford.
Published : Sep 13, 2019 09:53 IST
Romelu Lukaku says he was "scapegoated" during his time at Manchester United.
The Belgium striker left Old Trafford to join Inter ahead of the 2019-20 Serie A season and has scored two goals in two games under Antonio Conte, who previously tried to sign him for both Juventus and Chelsea.
And the 26-year-old feels he was mistreated after falling out of favour last term under United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
"Scapegoated," Lukaku told ESPN . "Meaning 'You. Are. The. Reason.'"
Lukaku was criticised for a perceived weight problem, with former United captain Gary Neville describing the issue as "unforgivable" for a professional footballer.
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"Normally I have a fine digestive system," Lukaku explained.
"I digest everything very quickly. That's how it had been my entire life. But what the nutritionist said to me was it had stopped working.
"I'm good now. My body is in the zone."
Lukaku feels the time was right to leave United and revealed he has settled in quickly at Inter.
"This could be the team I need," he said. "There's the love I have for this area. The love that I have for Inter.
"And it was the perfect moment for me to leave England. I didn't want to be there anymore."
Sanchez: You won't find anyone like Lukaku
Forward Alexis Sanchez said there is no one like Lukaku in the world as he hailed the Serie A club's most expensive player.
Sanchez followed Lukaku to Inter from United on loan and the Chilean heaped praise on his star team-mate.
"You won't find anyone else like him, anywhere in the world," Sanchez told ESPN .
"Lukaku and I trained very well. But we needed to play more in games to get to our best.
"It wasn't the right time for us to be at Manchester. Too many changes. When you change that much, it's tough.
"Lukaku and I trained very well. I can feel the will here to achieve. This is why I'm here.
"That's why Romelu is here. Will it work? We will have a lot more to say about that at the end of the season."
Lukaku scored 42 goals for United across all competitions following his move to Old Trafford from Everton in 2017.
Sanchez swapped Arsenal for United in a high-profile transfer in January last year, however, form and injuries limited the 30-year-old to just five goals.
Inter hosts Udinese on Saturday, with Sanchez looking to make his debut for the Nerazzurri.