Romelu Lukaku transfer future: Agent claims Everton striker will only move to a 'global power'

Romelu Lukaku's agent claims that only the top clubs in European football can afford to sign the sought-after striker. The 23-year-old Belgian has been persistently linked with a big-money move away from Everton in recent months, but Mino Raiola has says the club's new-found wealth makes any potential move complicated.

Everton's new shareholder Farhad Moshiri has helped to change the landscape at Goodison Park, meaning the Premier League club are not under any pressure to sell their prize assets. Raiola admitted that Lukaku's potential suitors – who are rumoured to include Chelsea – will have to pay big money to secure his signature.

"Everton don't need the money anymore but Romelu wants to play for a club that can win trophies," Raiola told Sportwereld of the reported Chelsea target.

"[However] something's changed at Everton. There's a new project. If he leaves, it has to be a good deal for all parties."

Raiola said the Everton man could easily play in Italy's Serie A, but insisted the Belgian is only attainable to the super-rich, such as Chelsea and Real Madrid. "Romelu certainly has the qualities to play in Italy," he said of Lukaku, who joined Everton from Chelsea in 2014. "But as the Italian landscape currently looks, there's no team that can afford him. He is too expensive for Serie A.

"Only a global power can pay for him. The top clubs in England, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain."