1 month ago
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English Premier League giants Liverpool, Newcastle, and Tottenham Hotspurs have sent their scouts to watch Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman ahead of a potential move next summer, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
According to TBR football’s Graeme Bailey, the EPL trio had their scouts in attendance during the UEFA Champions League between Atalanta and Arsenal last Thursday to watch the Nigeria international.
“As TBR can reveal that Tottenham, Liverpool, and Newcastle were all represented in Bergamo on Thursday,” the website wrote.
“Tottenham, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Newcastle United had scouts watching Ademola Lookman and Ederson midweek.
“We at TBR are told that the main reason for their presence was to assess the progress of Ederson and Ademola Lookman, who they all looked at closely in the summer.
“Both Ederson and Lookman were strongly linked with moves during the previous window, but Atalanta held off suitors. However, interest remains strong.”
Since joining Atalanta for €9.35m plus bonuses from RB Leipzig in 2022, Lookman has been in fine form for the Black and Blues, having scored a total of 33 goals and provided 19 assists in 81 competitive appearances.
His impressive form played a key role as the Nerazzurri returned to the UEFA Champions League after memorably lifting the UEFA Europa League trophy last season, their first European trophy when they were the only team to defeat ‘invincible’ Bayern Leverkusen, winning 3-0 in the final.
Lookman scored a hat-trick in the game to condemn Xabi Alonso’s side to their only defeat of the 2023/24 season, thus becoming the first player to score a Europa League final hat-trick and the sixth player to do so in a European final, a feat first achieved by Jupp Heynckes for Borussia Monchengladbach in the 1975 UEFA Cup.
The 25-year-old’s outstanding performance during the 2023/24 season attracted him to several clubs during the summer transfer window, including Liverpool, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus.
Rumours linking Lookman with a move to a bigger club gathered momentum after the player missed the club’s first two games of the season, with Football Italia reporting that the player asked not to be called up for their opening game against Lecce.
Though no move materialised, the 26-year-old is back with Atalanta and has started the season with a bang, scoring a goal and registering an assist in his first game.At 26, Lookman’s best years are still ahead of him, and with a repeat of last season’s performance, the Nigerian will be among the most sought-after players during the next transfer window.
