"I have a bit of sympathy" - Jason Cundy says Romelu Lukaku's mediocre Chelsea stint wasn't entirely down to him 

Former Chelsea defender Jason Cundy offered his sympathies to Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku, claiming he fell victim to the circumstances at the Premier League club.

The 29-year-old, who had joined Chelsea on a club-record deal worth £97.5 million last summer, is set to move back to Serie A side Inter Milan. In 44 appearances across all competitions last season, he scored a below-par 15 goals and provided two assists.

According to Sky Sports, the two clubs have agreed to a loan move worth up to £10.3 million. Lukaku, who scored 64 goals during his two-year stint in Milan, has also agreed to a 30-per-cent pay cut to smooth his departure.

Speaking on The Sports Bar [via talkSPORT], Cundy gave his thoughts on the entire transfer saga.

"It’s been an absolute disaster. You can’t dress it up for anything other than it hasn’t worked. My own take on this is he suffered as a result, as Chelsea did, and [Thomas] Tuchel had to change too, when we lost, for the long term, the left-wing back [Ben Chilwell] and right-wing back [Reece James]," Cundy said.

Speaking about Lukaku's performances during his second stint at Stamford Bridge, the 52-year-old said:

"I thought he was a bit pathetic at times. You see some players who put more in and maybe it was a loss of confidence maybe. I’m not convinced he really wanted to be there. His body language at times showed that."

He further added:

"I have a bit of sympathy for him. I felt at times that we didn’t play to his strengths. There were a number of times where I felt we could have got the ball into him earlier. I felt Tuchel was so concentrated on trying to get the best out of the team because we missed Chilwell and James, the focus of trying to get the best out of Lukaku was lost a little bit."

Chelsea line up attacking replacements

The Blues are reportedly interested in five forwards to fill the shoes of the departing Lukaku. According to a report by the Daily Mail, the club has identified Bayern Munich talisman Robert Lewandowski, Everton forward Richarlison, Lille attacker Jonathan David, Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and Sassuolo poacher Gianluca Scamacca as potential options.

Meanwhile, the London club are "confident of closing Raheem Sterling's deal" with Premier League champions Manchester City for a reported fee of £35 million, according to journalist Gianluca Di Marzio. As per the report, Sterling has intimated Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola that he's open to a new challenge.

Chelsea will begin their 2022/23 Premier League season away from home at Everton on August 6.