Inter Milan ultras accuse Romelu Lukaku of being a 'mercenary' and 'betraying the club' in scathing statement as the Chelsea forward is linked with rivals Juventus

Inter Milan's notorious Curva Nord ultras have labelled Romelu Lukaku as a 'mercenary' and accused the Chelsea forward of 'betrayal' as he continues to be linked to Juventus.

Lukaku had been expected to rejoin Inter Milan after spending last season on loan at the San Siro, but Juve have emerged as favourites to sign him.

The Belgian forward is said to have snubbed Simone Inzaghi's side after being benched for the Champions League final last season.

Curva Nord had previously slammed Lukaku for the nature of his departure to Chelsea in 2021, when he joined the Blues for £97.5m after two years at Inter.

The Inter Milan ultras referenced Lukaku's previous 'betrayal' in a scathing statement on social media, where they labelled him as a 'vile cheap mercenary'.

‘Those who betrayed you will do it again, not because they enjoy it, but because it falls within their nature,' the statement.

‘Yes, because you Romelu betrayed all of us, who defended you to the sword during your difficult period.

‘We defended you when the fans of the team that sought you mocked you, now you repay us with a stab worthy of Brutus.

‘You kissed the badge that is worth more than our lives to us and now like a vile cheap mercenary you're selling yourself to the highest bidder.

‘Before being a champion you have to be a man. And you're not.’

Lukaku had scored 14 goals across all competitions during a loan spell at Inter last season.

The 30-year-old had been unable to match his stunning form from two years earlier that helped Inter to the Scudetto.

Lukaku may also face difficulties in winning over Juventus fans should he complete a move to the club.

A group of Juventus supporters gathered outside the club's medical centre on Monday to chant that they 'don't want' Lukaku.

The Belgian striker does have an unsavoury history with the Juve fans, after 171 were banned for racially abusing him in April.

He was subjected to monkey chants from a section of supporters behind the goal after he converted a penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time to salvage a 1-1 draw for Inter.

Video footage showed Juventus fans chanting 'f***ing monkey' and 'f*** off' at Lukaku, who was shown a second yellow card and sent off for shushing them during his celebrations - with the referee deciding his gesture was provocative.

Inter appealed Lukaku's ban which was originally upheld by Italy's Sports Court of Appeal, but Italian Football Federation (FIGC) president, Gabriele Gravina, personally intervened and overturned the ban.

After the decision to overturn his ban, Lukaku said: 'I believe that thanks to his intervention justice has been done and this sends out a great message to the whole world of sport and beyond. This has shown that the desire is there to fight racism.'