What Coach Gasperini Said After Nigeria’s Lookman Scored 50 For Atalanta
Gian Piero Gasperini made sure that the rumours of a fall-out between himself and Atalanta star Ademola Lookman were laid to rest with a gesture and short message for the Nigeria international after his goal and subsequent substitution during Sunday’s 4-0 victory over Juventus.
According to Monday’s reports, Gasperini told the Super Eagles forward Lookman: “Can I give you a hug, can you give me a nice smile?” which led to a big hug between the pair on the touchline.
Lookman hit a major career milestone on Sunday night, scoring his 50th goal for Atalanta in a commanding 4-0 win over Juventus at the Allianz Stadium.
Lookman sealed the rout with Atalanta’s fourth goal after strikes from Mateo Retegui, Marten de Roon and Davide Zappacosta had already put the visitors in control.La Dea inflicted an historic defeat upon the Bianconeri on Sunday evening, knocking four goals past Thiago Motta’s side to record the worst Juventus defeat at home since 1967: Mateo Retegui, Marten De Roon, Davide Zappacosta and Lookman provided the goals.
Lookman, who had been involved in a public spat with coach Gasperini earlier in the season after a missed penalty during Atalanta’s Champions League exit, has been in decent form since then with three goals in his last three Serie A appearances.
The reigning African Player of the Year is now up to 25 goal contributions from 31 matches in all competitions this season, made up of five goals and two assists from seven Champions League outings, and 13 goals and five assists from 22 run-outs in Serie A.
He struck in the 77th minute against Juventus on Sunday evening, before being substituted off in the 80th with the scores already at 0-4 in favour of La Dea.
Ademola Lookman, Africa’s reigning Footballer of the Year, is enjoying the kind of purple patch that may yet ensure he’s a contender for the continent’s top individual prize again this year.
The forward extended his goal-scoring run to six goals in seven matches when he rounded off Atalanta’s 4-0 masterclass away at Juventus, a one-sided showdown that sent shockwaves through Italian football.
Lookman scored Atalanta’s fourth goal 13 minutes from full-time, as the visitors capitalised on Dusan Vlahovic’s sloppiness in possession and the Nigeria international raced away before burying the ball beyond Michele Di Gregorio.
It could have been a different story had the officials deemed an intervention by Lookman just before the half-hour mark to have been handball, with the incident immediately preceding Mateo Retegui’s penalty to open the scoring for Atalanta.
VAR decided there had been no infringement by Lookman, but Juve’s Weston McKennie was found guilty of a similar offence and a penalty was awarded in Atalanta’s favour.
In Lookman, Atalanta also have a superstar who could inspire them to overhaul Internazionale, who are three points ahead of them at the pinnacle of the Italian top flight.
Despite a very public fallout with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini, Lookman hasn’t missed a step either side of his high-profile penalty miss against Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League.
Gasperini didn’t hold back in the aftermath of the 3-1 defeat that saw the Italian side tumble out of the Champions League, describing Lookman as “one of the worst penalty takers I’ve ever seen.”
Lookman described the coach’s criticism as “deeply disrespectful.”
“It saddens me to have to write this statement, most of all because of what we have achieved together as a team and as a city,” Lookman posted on social media. “Being singled out in the manner I have been not only hurts but feels deeply disrespectful, not least because of the immense hard work and commitment I have always put in each and every day to help bring success to this club and the incredible fans of Bergamo.”
Lookman has maintained his high level of performance, netting twice against Empoli in late February before following up with his display against Juve to take him up to third in the Serie A goal-scoring charts.
He even embraced Gasperini upon his 80th-minute substitution, suggesting, for now at least, that the two men have buried the hatchet.
The head coach lauded the 27-year-old in the aftermath of La Dea’s triumph, backing the Nigerian to captain Atalanta in the future, and firmly ending any talk of a dressing-room rift at the club.
“When a group spends 300 days together in a year, people can have different views,” Gasperini said after the match. “Lookman became a fantastic player when he improved his perception of the team. He used to have a more individual approach. He wasn’t a bad guy, but he mostly focused on the individual. He made Atalanta great, and Atalanta made him great. I am convinced he can be the captain before the end of the season.”
It remains to be seen what the future holds for Lookman and Atalanta, with the forward approaching the final year of his contract with the club, and having been linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain last year.
