Africa's Ademola Lookman put in a remarkable performance to help his side slay European giants and attain a continental trophy on Wednesday night.
The Nigerian scored a sensational hat-trick to help Atalanta beat Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen, who had gone a mammoth 51 games unbeaten, by three goals to nil in the final of the UEFA Europa League on Wednesday night.
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The attacker has risen to incredible heights since joining the Serie A club and has surpassed expectations – given that many know him for being an Everton flop – to etch his name into La Dea's record books after giving their faithful a night they are unlikely to ever forget.
Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini admitted that when they purchased the 26-year-old from RB Leipzig shortly after his loan spell at Leicester City, they did not expect the player to reach the heights he has. Speaking after their triumphant victory, the coach explained what he did to get the most out of the Nigerian.
"We had a senior manager at Atalanta [Lee Congerton] who had worked at Leicester, who saw the opportunity to bring him in and thought he was a possible useful player," the 66-year-old said, per BBC Sport. "Nobody could ever imagine he could make this much progress. He wasn't overly prolific in England. I changed his position to a more attacking role. Tonight, he achieved something which will remain in the annals of football history – a stunning hat-trick."
His three goals were indeed stunning. From early on in the game, his dribbling abilities combined with his thunderous pace seemed to pose a threat to the Leverkusen defence. Those proved serious warning signs because in the 12th minute, Lookman made a sharp, late run into the box to get on the end of a ball put in by Davide Zappacosta and tuck it home.
Nearly 15 minutes later, the Super Eagles star struck again. He latched on to a loose ball outside Die Werkself's penalty area and swiftly cut inside to get the ball on to his right foot, nutmegging Granit Xhaka in the process, before curling it past an outstretched Matej Kovar to find the corner of the net in elegant fashion.
Lookman would go on to deliver the final blow that left Xabi Alonso in despair for the first time this season. On so many occasions, his side had scored a flurry of late goals to help them salvage results. This time, however, the Nigerian's third made a comeback highly unlikely. In the 75th minute, he received the ball on the left wing from former West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca.
From there, the Super Eagles star made his way into the box and found fellow African international Edmond Tapsoba in front of him. He performed a step-over to beat the Burkina Faso centre-back and, in doing so, shifted the ball on to his left foot and thrust it into the top-right corner.
"One of the best nights of my life"MOTM Ademola Lookman on scoring a hat-trick in the Europa League final ?? pic.twitter.com/7KBqD4xnx1
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 22, 2024
Lookman now has 15 goals and eight assists after 43 games in all competitions for his club. He has shown that a player can never be judged by his past, and what is more exciting is that the striker hopes this performance is just the start.
"In the past two years I've been able to take my game to a new level and show it on a more consistent basis," he said after the final. "Maybe it could have come earlier but it's come now. I'm pleased with the progress I've made but this is just the beginning. I hope for more nights like this."
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