Lookman says penalty criticism by own coach ‘deeply disrespectful’

Ademola Lookman, the Atalanta forward, has criticised Gian Piero Gasperini’s comments, calling him “one of the worst penalty takers” and calling him “one of the worst penalty takers” as “deeply disrespectful.”

As Atalanta exited the Champions League against Club Brugge on Tuesday, Lookman scored 34 seconds after starting as a half-time substitute and also missed a penalty.

Lookman was not supposed to take the penalty, according to Gasperini, who claimed the 27-year-old had a “frankly terrible record even in training.”

Lookman responded on Wednesday on social media by posting a message that “being singled out in the manner I have been not only hurts but feels deeply disrespectful, not the least of which is because of the incredible effort and dedication I have always put in each day to help this club and the incredible Bergamo supporters.”

The Nigerian international added: “In truth, I have experienced many challenging situations during my time here, the majority of which I have never addressed because I believe the team must always be protected and placed first.

This makes the events of last night even more traumatic. Along with our incredible fans, we as a team are hurting too with last night’s result. “

According to Gasperini, team-mates Mateo Retegui or Charles de Ketelaere should have taken the spot-kick.

However, Lookman said he was instructed by” the designated penalty taker “to take it.

” Lookman was not supposed to take that penalty, he is one of the worst penalty takers I’ve ever seen, “said Italian Gasperini.

” He has a frankly terrible record even in training, he converts very few of them. Although Retegui and De Ketelaere were present, Lookman decided to take the ball in a moment of enthusiasm after scoring, which I did not find particularly amusing.

Before last night’s Champions League exit, Lookman had a perfect penalty record for Atalanta, scoring all four penalties he had taken.

The defending African Footballer of the Year has now converted four penalties in his professional career, including one against Fulham when he converted a spot kick in the Panenka style in 2020.

In the Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen last year, Lookman scored a hat-trick, and he has now scored 15 goals for his club overall this year.

However, the Serie A side lost to Club Brugge in their second leg, falling 5-2 on aggregate, as they fell short of the last 16.

After his comments on social media, the official X account of Nigeria’s men’s national team posted in support of the forward.