Italian Serie A side Atalanta have denied claims that they broke any promises made to Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman regarding his potential departure from the club.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the club clarified that their gentleman’s agreement with the player only involved a sale to a foreign club, not to domestic rivals within Serie A.
Lookman on Sunday publicly confirmed that he had submitted an official transfer request, citing broken promises and the club’s refusal to allow him leave, despite receiving several offers—including one from Serie A rivals Inter Milan.
“Despite now receiving an offer in alignment with what I believe had been discussed, sadly, the club is blocking the opportunity for reasons I do not understand,” Lookman said in a statement.
More Read
“As a result, and after many months of broken promises and what I feel has been poor treatment toward me as both a human being and as a professional footballer, I sadly feel I have no choice but to speak out for what I believe is right. Enough is enough. I can confirm I have now handed in a formal transfer request,” he added.
Despite the player’s statement, Atalanta insists they have held up their end of the agreement. According to the club, the promise made was specifically to allow Lookman leave only if a lucrative offer came from a foreign club, as they have no interest in strengthening a domestic rival by selling him within the Italian league.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport per Football Italia, the verbal agreement was made last season when Lookman asked to be left out of the squad for the UEFA Champions League clash against Real Madrid, after receiving strong interest from Paris Saint-Germain.
The report further stated that Atalanta would have been more open to letting the Nigeria international leave had he pushed for a move to a club like Arsenal, Chelsea, or PSG, rather than to Serie A rivals.
Inter Milan are reportedly serious about securing Lookman’s signature and have already submitted a bid worth €45 million (€42m plus €3m in bonuses). However, Atalanta remain firm that they will only approve a move to Inter if their €50 million valuation is met.
© Bold Sports Media. All rights reserved. If sharing, kindly credit Bold Sports as the source and include a link to the original post. Unauthorised use is prohibited.
