LONDON - Jose Mourinho completed his £75 million capture of Romelu Lukaku on Monday and then taunted Chelsea that the Belgium striker has joined ‘the biggest club’.
Manchester United signed Lukaku from Everton on a five-year contract with the option of another year in a deal that could rise to £90m with two sets of add-ons totalling £15m, potentially making him the world’s most expensive player.
Mourinho nabbed the 24-year-old from Chelsea’s clutches and said: ‘He is a natural fit for Manchester United. He is a big personality and a big player. It is only natural that he wants to develop his career at the biggest club.
👀 Behind the scenes at the #RedRom launch... pic.twitter.com/ysxngkOBqz
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 11, 2017
‘He will be a great addition to the group and I know they will make him very welcome. I am really looking forward to working with him again.’
Completion of the deal was confirmed an hour before Lukaku (below) trained with his team-mates for the first time on the UCLA campus in Los Angeles. He is set to make his debut in United’s opening tour game against LA Galaxy at the weekend.
Who better to interview our latest signing, @RomeluLukaku9, than new United team-mate @PaulPogba? 🎤 #RedRom pic.twitter.com/UmUaoipedn
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 10, 2017
Lukaku revealed that he will wear the No 9 jersey after asking Zlatan Ibrahimovic for permission to inherit the number.
‘I asked for the No 9 because I’m a striker,’ he said.