Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini has clarified that he did not intend to offend Ademola Lookman following his comments after their UEFA Champions League defeat to Club Brugge on Tuesday.
Lookman, who had been sidelined with an injury, returned to the squad and scored shortly after coming on as a substitute. However, he missed a penalty later in the match, which upset Gasperini.
Following their 5-2 aggregate loss, Gasperini criticized Lookman’s penalty-taking ability, calling him the worst penalty taker he had ever seen.
In response to Lookman’s reaction to the criticism, Gasperini has now emphasized that he never meant to disrespect the Nigerian international.
“Lookman felt offended, but I didn’t want to offend anyone. He came on with a fantastic attitude against Club Brugge. If he works on improving his penalty skills, with his exceptional talent, Ademola could become our primary penalty taker,” Gasperini explained.
Atalanta currently sits in third place in Serie A and will face Empoli in their next league match on Sunday.
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