Atalanta coach, Gian Piero Gasperini said he was not too happy over the performance of Ademola Lookman in spite of the fact that the Nigeria International striker shared three of La Dea’s four goals with Charles De Ketelaere, in the 4-0 thrashing of Monza.
Aside, Lookman netted the third goal which was his first since March 9th when the Zebras mauled Juventus in an identical 4-0 away win in Turin. Yesterday’s was Lookman’s 14 goals in 28 Serie A matches in the on-going campaign.
Incidentally, both Lookman and De Ketelaere had a disappointing show against Lecce last time out but responded emphatically against Monza who has now been officially relegated from the Serie A.
“De Ketelaere started really strong, he did very well,” Gasperini told DAZN after his side’s win. “Lookman did well in the second half; I wasn’t too happy with him in the first.”
Nevertheless, the African Footballer of the Year was full of praises for his striking mate, De Ketelaere, saying the former Milan striker has immense qualities.
The Belgian international actually scored twice in La Dea’s 4-0 win over the now officially relegated Monza , netting his first goals since December, but Lookman insisted that his teammate ‘has a lot of quality’ and that ‘keep trying’ is ‘the most important thing’.
“Yes, last week we weren’t very happy with the result, after a draw at Lecce, and today we wanted to put it right,” Lookman told DAZN after the match. “Four goals away from home is always a good result.
“Charles has a lot of quality, he knows this,” Lookman added. “It’s never always easy to keep going, but he has the spirit to keep on going, to keep trying, so that’s the most important thing.
“Sometimes it doesn’t work, sometimes it does, but as long as you keep trying. That’s the most important – keep trying.”
De Ketelaere had often been left out of Gian Piero Gasperini’s starting line-up in recent weeks, and he expressed his determination to prove that he could still make ‘a real difference’ — something he did with a brace.
“It had been a while since I made a real difference, and I needed to show that I’m still here,” the former Milan attacking midfielder said. “I was eager, and I’m happy about the two goals and the win.”
Atalanta’s excellent away record was undermined by a series of slip-ups at home, which ultimately jeopardised La Dea’s chances of remaining in the Scudetto race until the end.
“Yes, it’s a bit of a shame because in many games we’ve shown we’re on another level, but then we missed out on a lot of home wins in recent months,” he contonued. “So it’s unfortunate, but we just have to try to change that trend in the two actually remaining home matches.”
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
