Atalanta fans slam Lookman: "Ungrateful", Juric calls him for Torino | OneFootball

Controversial banner in Zingonia despite his reinstatement to the squad

Atalanta, fans protest against Lookman: “You are ungrateful”

The return of Ademola Lookman to the team is not enough to mend the rift with part of the Nerazzurri fanbase. This morning, outside the Bortolotti Sports Center in Zingonia, a banner signed by the organized group Vecchia Guardia appeared. The message was direct and unequivocal: “11 reinstated… But for us, you remain ungrateful,” with the Nigerian’s shirt number crossed out with a red X.

The return after the August fallout

The striker, born in 1997, returned to group training on Thursday after difficult weeks marked by tensions with the club and coach. In August, Lookman made headlines for his 15 days of unexcused absence: a standoff that hid his desire to transfer to Inter. This decision led Atalanta to sideline him, forcing him to train separately until September 2.

After a meeting with management and coach Ivan Juric, the rift seemed healed: Lookman resumed working with his teammates, although he was not called up for the matches against Lecce and Paris Saint-Germain.

Tomorrow, the real test

Tomorrow’s away match against Torino could mark his true return to the pitch. Juric has included him in the squad list, but it remains to be seen how the fans will welcome him, especially in light of the banner that appeared today.

An open wound

The episode shows that, beyond the peace reached in the locker room, the relationship between Lookman and part of the curva remains compromised. While his talent on the field could immediately prove useful, in the stands, trust will have to be regained step by step.

Now it’s official: Lookman is back among Atalanta’s called-up players. The announcement was made by the Bergamo coach, Ivan Juric, at the press conference on the eve of the match against Torino: “Ademola spoke with me, the team, and my staff. He was welcomed well and from tomorrow he’ll start being available. For us, he’s a very important player. Starter? His fitness isn’t at its peak since he trained alone, but we’ll see. In training, he did very well.” Words that definitively close the case, at least from the club’s perspective. It’s a different story, however, for the Nerazzurri fans, who expressed their dissent with a banner outside the Zingonia Sports Center: “11 reinstated… But for us, you remain ungrateful,” reads the message signed ‘Vecchia Guardia,’ with the player’s number crossed out with a red X.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.