Ademola Lookman has strongly criticized Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini’s remarks about his penalty technique, calling them “deeply disrespectful” in a passionate social media post.
Atalanta were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Club Brugge, suffering a surprising 5-2 aggregate defeat in the play-offs. After losing 2-1 in the first leg, they were defeated 3-1 at home in the second leg on Tuesday night.
Lookman scored Atalanta’s only goal in the 46th minute of the second leg, but his penalty later in the match was saved by Simon Mignolet. Following the game, Gasperini criticized the Nigerian forward’s penalty-taking skills, claiming that Lookman was not supposed to take the spot kick. He suggested that Lookman had insisted on taking it over designated takers Mateo Retegui and Charles De Ketelaere.
“Lookman was not supposed to take that penalty,” Gasperini said. “He is one of the worst penalty-takers I’ve ever seen. He has a frankly terrible record. Even in training, he converts very few of them. Retegui and De Ketelaere were available, but in a moment of enthusiasm after scoring, Lookman decided to take the ball, and that was a gesture I did not appreciate at all.”
Lookman, who has been one of Atalanta’s standout performers since joining the club in 2022, responded in a heartfelt Instagram post. The 27-year-old highlighted his frustration at being singled out and emphasized his dedication to the team.
“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,” Lookman 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.”
He continued: “In truth, I have dealt with many difficult moments during my time here—most 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.”
Lookman concluded with a message of resilience: “Life’s about challenges and turning pain into power, which I’ll continue to do.”