'Strange' - Furious Edin Dzeko claims Inter picked Romelu Lukaku over him as ex-Man City striker appears to make cruel 'he had 30 minutes' dig about Belgian's infamous Champions League final horror-show

After helping Inter reach the final of the Champions League in the 2022-23 season, Dzeko had to leave the Italian giants as the club reportedly opted to sign Lukaku permanently from Chelsea. Lukaku's transfer, however, did not materialise as he joined AS Roma on loan last summer before completing a permanent move to Napoli in 2024.

The former Manchester City star has now claimed that Inter could have easily retained his services for no cost, however, they chose to decide otherwise. The Nerazzurri went on to win the Serie A title and the Italian Super Cup in the 2023-24 season while the Bosnian forward joined Fenerbahce which is currently managed by Jose Mourinho.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the attacker said, "If they chose this way, it means that everyone agreed, coach and executives. To me, it looked like a strange decision, because you could keep a player who started all the important games, including the Champions League final, at no cost and have four strikers in your squad. It looked very strange to me, that’s all. Then, I understood it with time and respected it, also because everyone treated me very well at Inter."

The 38-year-old was included in Simone Inzaghi's starting lineup in the Champions League final against City as Lukaku had to start on the bench. The Belgian came on as a substitute with 30 minutes left in the clock, however, he failed to make an impact and squandered an easy chance as they eventually lost 1-0.

Speaking on the final match, Dzeko added, "Everyone can talk… But I say: do you think that a coach can choose to field a player who is not as good as the one he keeps on the bench? And doing it in a Champions League final? I remained calm, I knew what I could give to the team. For sure Lukaku was not happy not to start, it’s normal. But then you come on and make a difference, if you can: he had 30 minutes [in the Champions League final], he came with the scoreline still being 0-0, and then…"

The striker will be next seen in action on Sunday as Mourinho's side take on Samsunsport in a Turkish Super Lig clash.