Romelu Lukaku wants Inter to establish a prolonged period of dominance in Serie A after wrapping up their title-winning campaign with a 5-1 victory over Udinese on Sunday.
Inter sealed top spot with four games remaining and finally got their hands on the trophy after a resounding win in front of 1,000 spectators at San Siro.
Their victory meant they gained more than 90 points in a single top-flight campaign for only the second time in their history (after 2006-07), while Antonio Conte became the first coach to achieve that tally with two different Serie A sides in the three-points-per-win era.
Ashley Young put the Nerazzurri in front early on, with goals from Christian Eriksen, Lautaro Martinez and Ivan Perisic putting them comfortably out of reach.
Lukaku, who came on as a second-half substitute, scored fortuitously when Alexis Sanchez s cross struck him in the chest after coming back off the post. It was his 30th goal in all competitions this season and his 24th in Serie A – only in 2016-17 for Everton has he scored more (25) in a single campaign in one of Europe s top five leagues.
Roberto Pereyra converted a consolation penalty for Udinese but that did little to dampen the Nerazzurri s celebrations, for which fans had gathered outside the stadium.
Having denied Juventus a 10th straight Scudetto, Lukaku urged Inter not to rest on their laurels next season.
I hope it can be the start [of a successful era for Inter]. Now I ll go to the European Championship with my country and when we all return, we ve got to be even stronger than before, Lukaku told DAZN.
This year was wonderful for us because we worked so hard to win this Scudetto. Last season we came really close, but this year we played well, were physically strong. We all made a big step forward.
I am truly proud to play for this team.
It s our time again.
— Inter (@Inter_en)
Lukaku donned a personalised t-shirt with an image of his grandparents on and became tearful as he celebrated the first major honour of his career.
I didn t want to cry today, but the emotion was just too strong. This photo is of my grandmother and my grandfather, and I thought of them, said Lukaku.
When my grandfather died in 2005, I promised him I would win at least something in my career. I did that today and I am truly happy.
