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    Romelu Lukaku Hits Back at Gary Neville's Comments He Is Overweight

    Gill Clark@@gillclarkyFeatured Columnist IIAugust 18, 2019

    Soccer forward Romelu Lukaku gives his thumbs up as he salutes Inter Milan supporters from a window of the Italian Olympic Committee's headquarters, in Milan,Italy, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019. Manchester United forward Lukaku is on the verge of completing his move to Inter Milan on the final day of transfers in England. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
    Luca Bruno/Associated Press

    Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku has hit back at comments made by former Manchester United captain Gary Neville that he is overweight and unprofessional.

    The Belgium international posted a topless selfie on social media and added the words: "Not bad for a fat boy."

    Journalist Kristof Terreur shared the image and noted his weight at previous clubs Anderlecht, Chelsea and Everton:

    Kristof Terreur šŸ“°šŸŽ„ @HLNinEngeland

    When Lukaku arrived in the first squad of Anderlecht, at the age of 16, his weight was 100 kg. (And bench pressed 100 kg) When he joined Chelsea at the age of 18 he was 101 kg. At Everton he played at 99-100 kg. https://t.co/cKfwfkkcWG

    Neville had commented about Lukaku's physical condition in a response toĀ a Twitter post from The Athletic's Andy Mitten prior to the striker's departure from Manchester United to Inter Milan:

    Gary Neville @GNev2

    @AndyMitten Andy he admitted he was overweight ! He is over 100kg! Heā€™s a Manchester United player! He will score goals and do well at Inter Milan but unprofessionalism is contagious šŸ˜· ! šŸ‘‹

    Meanwhile, BeIN Sports commentatorĀ Tancredi Palmeri said that Lukaku would miss Inter's first Serie A game of the season after arriving four kilograms heavier than expected:

    Tancredi Palmeri @tancredipalmeri

    So it appears @GNev2 had the right inside info: Lukaku showed up at Inter weighting 104kg, and has yet to get within 100kg as requested. Being still out of shape, he will likely miss first official Serie A game next week

    Former Manchester United defender Gary Pallister has also remarked on Lukaku's weight when talking toĀ AmericanGambler.com (h/t Alexander Netherton at Eurosport).

    "I think Lukaku is a goalscorer and he will score plenty of goals, but the way they want to play at times, he's too heavy," he said.

    However, sports journalistĀ Siavoush Fallahi said Lukaku is not out of shape but is carrying too much muscle:

    āœØ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content Right Arrow Icon
    Siavoush Fallahi @SiavoushF

    Few notes on Lukaku: Heā€™s not unfit as in out of shape, rather the opposite. Heā€™s carrying too much muscle which theyā€™re working on decreasing. Heā€™s not unfit, heā€™s missing match form. More than a week until the official start of the season. Heā€™ll be there for Inter-Lecce

    This is not the first time Lukaku has taken to social media to defend himself. He was forced to delete a post revealingĀ training statistics amid claims he lacked pace, per James Ducker at TheĀ Telegraph.

    Lukaku spent two years at Manchester United after moving from Everton in 2017. He scored 27 goals in all competitions in his first season but managed only 15 in his second.

    He has already found the back of the net in Inter colours. He bagged four goals in a 8-0 win overĀ Virtus Bergamo in a pre-season friendly:

    Goal @goal

    Lukaku did score four goals in his first friendly... šŸ’Ŗ https://t.co/hISsfj78Y3

    The 26-year-old was also on target in a 2-0 pre-season victory over Gozzano:

    Inter @Inter_en

    šŸ“¹ | HIGHLIGHTS @RomeluLukaku9 and @MPolitano16 struck as we beat Gozzano 2-0. Here are the highlights! https://t.co/0j8Fq9A54Q

    Inter begin their Serie A campaign on August 26 against newly-promoted Lecce at the San Siro. Much will be expected of the Nerazzurri after bringing in Antonio Conte as manager and signing players such as Lukaku,Ā Valentino Lazaro and Nicolo Barella.