Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte believes Romelu Lukaku was still a good signing for Chelsea despite his return to Inter this summer.

Blgu signed for the Blues last summer for a club-record fee, but after a positive start to his second spell at the club, he failed to make a real impact at Stamford Bridge.

He has now returned to the San Siro on a season-long loan deal after scoring just 15 goals in 44 games last season.

Conte, who was previously in charge of Chelsea from 2016 to 2018, spent two seasons at Inter alongside the Belgian striker, with the pair proving successful together.

They won the Serie A title in 2021, with Lukaku scoring a total of 64 goals in all competitions over those two years.

Despite the 29-year-old's poor form in west London, Conte still believes he was a good signing for Thomas Tuchel's side.

Speaking to the media ahead of Chelsea's clash with Spurs on Sunday via the Telegraph, he stated: "We are talking about a huge amount of money for a player and I think we are talking about a really important striker in the world."

"But sometimes a situation happens outside of football and I think that Romelu lived two years in Milan and he was a king."

"The fans showed him a lot of passion and I think he's a guy who needs that.

And for that reason, I think he wanted to go back to Milan.

But, for sure, the signing was a good signing for Chelsea."

“Then, you know very well that there are players who need more time to make an impact.

But, for sure, he was a good signing for Chelsea."

"He has the potential to play in the Premier League.

I remember very well when he started playing last season, he played very well and you in the media said that Lukaku is really strong."

"Many things can happen for confidence to fall.

Now it is right for him to play for an important club in Italy to try and regain his confidence."

"Well, we're talking about a really important, really good striker," added the Tottenham boss.

Both teams go into Sunday's London derby on the back of victories on the opening weekend of the Premier League season.

Chelsea won 1-0 away to Everton, while Spurs beat Southampton 4-1 at home.

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