Arsenal watching Lookman situation amid Atalanta fallout | OneFootball

Arsenal are monitoring Ademola Lookman’s situation at Atalanta following the forward’s fallout with head coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

Mikel Arteta wants to bring in further firepower in the summer and is considering an approach to bring Lookman back to the Premier League.

The ex-Everton and Fulham winger has been a huge hit since signing for Atalanta, where he has scored 49 goals in 106 appearances.

Last season, he hit 17 goals in all competitions and was named African Footballer of the Year for 2024 after scoring a hat-trick in the Europa League final win over Bayer Leverkusen.

However, his future at Atalanta is in doubt after a public spat with head coach Gasperni. The Atalanta boss lambasted Lookman following his missed penalty during the club’s Champions League exit to Club Brugge last week.

Lookman took the kick ahead of first-choice takers Mateo Retegui and Charles De Ketelaere and saw a tame effort saved as Atalanta exited Europe.

Following the clash, Gasperini was fierce in his criticism of the winger.

“Lookman was not supposed to take that penalty, he is one of the worst penalty takers I’ve ever seen,” Gasperini said after the 5-2 aggregate defeat.

“He has a frankly terrible record even in training, he converts very few of them. Retegui and De Ketelaere were there, but Lookman in a moment of enthusiasm after scoring decided to take the ball and that was a gesture I did not appreciate at all.”

Lookman responded to those comments, calling them ‘deeply disrespectful’ in a post on social media.

“It saddens me on a day like this to have to write this statement – most of all because of what we have achieved together as a team and as a city,” the Nigerian wrote.

“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 to the incredible fans of Bergamo.

“In truth, I have dealt with many difficult moments during my time here – the majority of which I have never spoken about because in my opinion the team must always be protected and must come first. This makes what happened last night even more hurtful.

“Along with our incredible fans, we as a team are hurting too with last night’s result. During the match the designated penalty taker instructed me to take the penalty; and to support the team I took responsibility in the moment to do so. Life’s about challenges and turning pain into power which l’ll continue to do.”

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