There are few coaches in Serie A with pedigree and longevity like Gian Piero Gasperini. The 69-year old managed Genoa (twice), Inter Milan, Palermo (twice) and Atalanta so far, and surely left his mark in the club from Bergamo, where he is the coach since 2016. He turned them into a Champions League participant year in, year out, he won Atalanta‘s first ever trophy with a UEFA League title (defeating Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen in the process) and he started this season well. But, an unexpected loss to Brugge in the Champions League playoff match (the Belgium team won 5-2 on aggregate) hit Gasperini hard and he totally lost it.Atalanta’s coach about Nigerian: “He is one of the worst penalty takers I have ever seen”In fact, he all but accused one of his best players Ademola Lookman for losing the game (1-3 in Bergamo) and singled him out as the worst penalty taker. The Nigerian forward came in in the second half and scored in the first minute of appearance to make it 1-3. He then missed the penalty and even thou other players offered far less than Lookman, Gasperini commented his missed penalty with an unhidden anger. After such an unusual and certainly not educational method, the Nigerian was forced to reply to his coach in only was possible – by a public statement.pic.twitter.com/Ekv2bp7pwV— Ademola Lookman (@Alookman_) February 19, 2025 “It saddens me on a day like this to have to write this statement – Most of all because of what we have achieved together as a team and as a city. Being singled out in the manner I have been not only hurts but feels deeply disrespectful, not least because of the immense hard work and commitment I have always put in each and every day to help bring success to this club and the incredible fans of Bergamo. In truth, I have dealt with many difficult moments during my time here – the majority of which I have never spoken about because in my opinion the team must always be protected and must come first. This makes what happened last night even more hurtful. ALong with our incredible fans, we as a team are hurting too with last night’s result. During the match the designated penalty taker instructed me to take the penalty; and to support the team I took the responsibility in the moment to do so. Life’s about challenges and turning pain into power, which I’ll continue to do” he said through his social media account. Afer this public clash, it remains to be seen will Lookman stay in Bergamo beyond May.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – PLAYOFFSReturn legTuesdayMilan – Feyenoord 1-1 (0-1)/Gimenez 1 – Carranza 73/Feyenoord win 2-1 on aggAtalanta – Club Brugge 1-3 (0-3)/Talbi 3, 27, Jutgla 45+3 – Lookman 46/Brugge win 5-2 on aggBayern – Celtic 1-1 (0-0)/Kuhn 63 – Davies 90+4/Bayern win 3-2 on aggBenfica – Monaco 3-3 (1-1)/Akturkoglu 22, Pavlidis 76 pen, Kokcu 84 – Minamino 32, Ben Seghir 51, Ilenikhena 81/Benfica win 4-3 on aggWednesday 20.45: (1.95) Dortmund (3.50) Sporting (3.90)23.00: (1.18) PSG (7.25) Brest (15.0)23.00: (2.30) PSV (3.45) Juventus (3.05)23.00: (1.85) Real Madrid (3.80) Man.City (4.00)***odds are subject to change***
