Atalanta head coach Ivan Juric has broken his silence on the ongoing Ademola Lookman transfer saga, admitting it is “sad” the situation has reached this stage, Bold Sports reports.
The Nigerian international has been absent from training for over a week and is understood to have no intention of playing for the club again as he pushes for a move to Inter Milan.
Lookman has already handed in a formal transfer request, accusing Atalanta of breaking promises over his future. Inter have agreed personal terms with the 27-year-old, but their latest €45 million bid was rejected, with Atalanta holding out for €50 million.
“Ademola was very fair with me, he explained his thoughts,” Juric told L’Eco di Bergamo newspaper. “We just have to accept the situation. It’s sad that it got to this point. I trained the team when he already had a calf injury, then this happened, so I never really got to work with him. At least it meant that it didn’t influence the squad.”
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“We lost players who provided 80-90 per cent of our goals and it won’t be easy to replace them. I don’t think anyone will arrive who can replicate the numbers provided by Retegui or Lookman, but we must reinforce with intelligence and widen our list of alternatives.”
Lookman, who has been an important player for Atalanta since joining the side, has not only been vocal about his desire to leave but has also erased all references to the club from his social media profiles. His actions came after weeks of stalled negotiations between the two Serie A clubs.
Atalanta CEO Luca Percassi has maintained that while the player wants to go, the final decision on the timing and valuation of any sale rests solely with the club. On the other hand, Inter Milan are waiting to see whether Atalanta soften their stance before deciding to proceed with the deal or go for alternatives.
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