Romelu Lukaku has contradicted Ole Gunnar Solskjaer by insisting that the Norwegian wanted him to remain at the club over the summer.
The Belgian completed a £75m move to Inter Milan on English deadline day after it became clear that the striker was not Solskjaer's first choice.
Solskjaer, on the subject of Lukaku, later said that he had no interest in keeping players who did not want to be at the club.
However, speaking in an interview with Het Belang van Limburg, Lukaku said: "Solskjaer has my eternal respect. He understood me when I said in March that it was time for me to leave England.
"I have been in the Premier League as an 18-year-old boy and now I am 26. Solskjaer wanted to keep me, but I was ready for something new."
The 26-year-old has enjoyed a strong start to life in Italy, scoring nine goals in 12 Serie A games.
United, meanwhile, remain on the lookout for Lukaku's replacement, with Mario Mandzukic said to be the club's top target ahead of the January window.
Leo Nieboer
