Achraf Hamiki and Sehrou Guirassy were therefore unable to do anything: the starry path traced in the Moroccan sky led straight to the discreet smile of a hitman who had become, in recent months, a model of the genre. Ademola Lookman doesn't have the physique of a killer, doesn't have the stomach for traumatizing kids just by looking at them, and yet his consecration as best African player of the year is uncontested. At 27, the left winger dreaded of Atalanta is now establishing itself as a reference and while waiting to know in which sphere we will place the Nigerian at the end of his career, the harvest of rewards could not stop there. Because when he received the precious trophy, Lookman knew: if 2024 was an exciting year, 2025 could be even more beautiful. Its Dea throne at the top of Serie A, and above all, it seems stronger and determined than ever to change its status as it has demonstrated, on its territory as well as in the Champions League, its ability to compete over time with the greatest . And then as long as he is there, everything is possible.
The new Nigerian war machine
Let it be said: it is not an event to see Lookman winning on a continental scale. Quite simply because Victor Osimhen had already done it last year, marking the return to the forefront of Super Eagles who despaired of finding a golden generation since that of the 94 World Cup which had seen, in the space of seven years, five Nigerians leave with the golden charm in their hands (the late Rashidi Yekini in 1993, Emmanuel Amunike in 1994, Nwankwo Kanu in 1996 and 1999 and Victor Ikpeba in 1997). What changes is the rise of the man which has been exponential since he first put on the Nerazzurri shirt on August 13, 2022 against Sampdoria. In the space of two stints in Bergamo, Ademola Lookman went from an illustrious unknown with almost insignificant stints in the Premier League and Bundesliga to the benchmark of a series that he sets out to demolish every weekend.
His start to the season attests to this: decisive twelve times in thirteen contested days (this summer, Lookman wanted to leave the club and rumors even sent him to PSG), the Nigerian is one of the headliners of this mature Atalanta and winner of the Europa League thanks to a hat-trick… from Ademola Lookman against the Leverkusen Invincibles coached by Xabi Alonso. An ability to be decisive not only against the stooges of the domestic championship also demonstrated the level reached: Napoli, AC Milan or even Real Madrid in the Champions League have all already taken at least one pawn from Lookman.
An explosion, news, obviously to the credit of one man: Gian Piero Gasperini. The Italian technician, certainly the most influential in Serie A over the last decade, polished this rough diamond as he had done for so many others in recent years (Papu Gómez, Josip Iličić, Højlund) or as he is in the process of to reproduce with Charles de Ketelaere or the Brazilian midfielder Éderson. « Compared to last year, Lookman has become a continuity player, he has scored a large number of goals, which makes him one of the best players in Europe, if not the world », Gasperini said about it. The world has been warned: Lookman will be the man to set its eyes on in 2025.
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