Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has praised Ademola Lookman for his growing influence after their dramatic UEFA Champions League elimination of Barcelona on Tuesday night, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Super Eagles forward proved decisive on the night, scoring the crucial goal that helped Atletico advance to their first Champions League semifinal since the 2016–17 campaign despite a 2–1 defeat in the second leg to progress 3-2 on aggregate.
The 28-year-old has made an immediate impact since his €35 million winter move from Atalanta and now has 10 goal contributions for the Spanish club, scoring six goals and providing four assists across all competitions. The transfer also made him the most expensive African player in La Liga history, and he is already justifying the fee.
Simeone hails Lookman’s importance to Atletico after Barcelona elimination
Ademola Lookman featured for 66 minutes in the Champions League quarter-final second leg tie, but it was his first-half display that made the difference, ultimately sending Atletico through at Barcelona’s expense.
Speaking after the match, Simeone expressed satisfaction with the Nigerian’s performances so far, while also suggesting there is still more to come from him in the months ahead.
“He’s still evolving, he’s improving a lot defensively which makes him even more important and of course he’s carrying more weight in the team”, the Argentine said post-match.
“He’s brilliant offensively, he’s very courageous and he’s very good in one on one. Since I’ve been at the club, we’ve never had players like that with those features and well, we are betting everything on playing almost four forwards. Giuliano is a winger, he’s almost a forward and when he attacks, he’s an extra forward and when we attack we played from the heart.
“The amount of running we did was unbelievable and Lookman’s offensive importance giving pace to the team when he was on the ball. We need more from him, he has more in his tank and we’ve seen it in Nigeria and well, he’s always played great”, Simeone concluded.
Atletico Madrid will now face the winner of the quarter-final clash between Arsenal and Sporting CP in the semifinals, with the first leg set to hold on April 28 and 29, while the second leg will take place between May 5 and 6.
