Why Lookman and Gasperini have fallen out: PSG rejection to penalty insult | OneFootball

The relationship between Ademola Lookman and Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini seems as fragile as ever following Tuesday’s loss to Club Brugge in the Champions League, but the tense situation dates back further than the Niegrian’s missed penalty against the Beligains.

Here’s why it’s all gone wrong.

Lookman-Gasperini rift: PSG’s summer interest

The story effectively dates back to the summer. Lookman was coming back in for pre-season training as the hero of Atalanta’s Europa League success a few weeks earlier, having scored an historic hat-trick to send La Dea to a 3-0 victory over the then-undefeated Bayer Leverkusen.

Having recently achieved star status, Lookman was reportedly approached by Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, which left Atalanta angry because the Parisians decided to talk to the player first, before they spoke to the club.

epa11685824 Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman celebrates after scoring the 5-0 goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Atalanta BC and Hellas Verona, in Bergamo, Italy, 26 October 2024. EPA-EFE/MICHELE MARAVIGLIA

Atalanta were reluctant to let their star forward go, particularly as they had been anticipating Teun Koopmeiners’s €50m sale to Juventus, which went through at the end of the transfer window.

Lookman had reportedly agreed personal terms with PSG, and had asked to be left out of the team at the start of the season while the transfer window was still open and while talks were still ongoing.

Atalanta had reportedly requested a fee in the region of €40m to sell Lookman to PSG, but in the end, a move to the Parc des Princes never materialised.

Venezia sub and snub

So, Lookman stayed on with Atalanta, where he has a contract that runs until the summer of 2026.

He missed the first three Serie A matches of the season, but marked his return with a goal and an assist in the 3-2 win over Fiorentina, and then another goal in a 3-2 loss to Como in the following game.

There was a bit of a rift between Lookman and Gasperini in October as well, when the Nigerian was taken off at half-time in a league match against Venezia, with the coach suggesting that he was struggling.

Lookman responded with two goals and two assists in an hour-long appearance against Hellas Verona the following weekend.

epa11685677 Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman scores the 4-0 goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Atalanta BC and Hellas Verona, in Bergamo, Italy, 26 October 2024. EPA-EFE/MICHELE MARAVIGLIA

The situation was so tense, though, that co-owner Stephen Pagliuca flew in to Italy from the United States to have talks with Lookman individually in an attempt to smooth things over.

Brugge penalty fiasco

Then came the exit from the Champions League on Tuesday night. Lookman scored Atalanta’s first of the game immediately after coming on at half-time, but later stepped up to take the penalty, despite not being the designated taker, and was unable to find the back of the net.

BERGAMO, ITALY – FEBRUARY 18: Simon Mignolet of Club Brugge KV dives as Ademola Lookman of Atalanta shoots and misses from the penalty spot during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Knockout Play-off second leg match between Atalanta BC and Club Brugge KV at Gewiss Stadium on February 18, 2025 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Scaccianoce/Getty Images)

Gasperini was furious with the missed penalty, calling Lookman ‘one of the worst penalty takers I’ve ever seen’ in the process.

Those comments have not pleased the Nigerian, who has released a statement confirming that he feels ‘deeply’ disrespected by the ‘hurtful’ comments.