NEV-ER DO THAT
Romelu Lukaku hits back at Gary Neville after Man utd legend questioned Inter striker’s professionalism
ROMELU LUKAKU has hit back at Gary Neville's suggestion he was unprofessional during his spell at Manchester United.
The former right-back had claimed Lukaku was "overweight" at United with his "contagious unprofessionalism" a big reason why he failed to live up to expectations.
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Now at Inter Milan, the Belgian is confident that he has always had the backing of his managers.
And while it didn't work out at Old Trafford, Lukaku is determined to wave away any bad blood on focus on being a success in Italy.
Speaking to BBC Sport, he stated: "Don't question my professionalism.
"I live for this game. I am at home all the time. I try to do everything to improve.
"[Neville] can talk about my fitness but he should never say anything about my professionalism, that I don't work hard enough. That is something he cannot say. All the coaches I have had say the same thing about me.
"What did Ole Gunnar Solskjaer say when I was on the training ground? What did he say? That I always work hard and always do my best to try and improve myself. Same with Jose Mourinho and Roberto Martinez.
"Now Antonio Conte will say it.
"Last year was just a bad year. It happens in football. You just have to move on. I am not going to sit here and react in a negative way.
"We are grown men. He is a pundit. He gets paid to say this kind of stuff.
";I am paid to play football. I just want to do my best for Inter Milan. That is it."
Lukaku previously suggested that Paul Pogba, Alexis Sanchez and himself were made out as scapegoats during United's recent struggles.
It is a statement he stands by, with it clear in his mind that he left on good terms with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
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He insisted: "It is what I felt. It is what I saw.
"But I cannot always look back and say this and this and this happened and Ole was not the right manager for me. I cannot do that.
"Me and Ole tried to work together but at one point I had to be honest with him. He was also honest with me. We found an agreement.
"I wanted to go. He understood why I wanted to go.
"It is something I will always be grateful to him for. We had a conversation man to man. I told him how I felt and he understood.
"He will always get massive respect from me and massive protection."
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Sanchez now joins Lukaku in Milan and the Belgian is confident they can both make a success of their Serie A stay.
The 26-year-old said: "It is a good move for Sanchez. He played in this league before. The people here know him. In the Premier League he did really well when he was at Arsenal.
"He has had a difficult time at Manchester United. Coming here was the right move."
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