By Onyekachi Chimezie
Atalanta Manager, Gian Piero Gasperini has showered praises on Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman after he scored the second goal in Atalanta’s 2-0 win at Empoli.
Lookman bagged his fifth goal in the Serie A in 12 appearances this season as his side recorded their ninth win in 12 games.
The 25-year-old who was brought from RB Leipzig last summer, scored in the 59th minute to double his side’s lead and has now netted four goals in his last five fixtures.
Atalanta now sits second on the league standings on 27 points all thanks to the win away to Empoli.
Speaking to Sky Sport Italia after the match, Gasperini said:
“Lookman has scored five goals and always gave a strong contribution to the team. He has technique, pace, and is a player any coach would be happy with. We realized pretty quickly what he was capable of, he was convincing from the start.”
Gasperini admitted he never imagined Atalanta would be high up on the log at this stage of the season.
“I honestly didn’t think we’d be at the top at this stage, that was excessive,” he said. “It is a bit of an odd campaign, we had these doubts over the summer whether to focus on even more young players, or to maintain the core of the old guard. It was a problem for me choosing between all these talented players, they did well to help me make those choices and to avoid creating tension in the locker room.
“We are all together trying to work for the good of Atalanta. The more we do that, the longer we can spend in the top places, the more we can help young players develop and also give satisfaction to those older players.”
