Ademola Lookman

Ademola Lookman

Lookman with RB Leipzig in 2019
Personal information
Full name	Ademola Olajade Alade Aylola Lookman
Date of birth	(1997-10-20) 20 October 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth	Wandsworth, England
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.74 m) [1]
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Atalanta
Number	11
Youth career
2008–2013	Waterloo
2013–2015	Charlton Athletic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2015–2017	Charlton Athletic	45	(10)
2017–2019	Everton	36	(1)
2018	→ RB Leipzig (loan)	11	(5)
2019–2022	RB Leipzig	11	(0)
2020–2021	→ Fulham (loan)	34	(4)
2021–2022	→ Leicester City (loan)	26	(6)
2022–	Atalanta	75	(32)
International career‡
2016	England U19	5	(0)
2016–2017	England U20	15	(4)
2017–2019	England U21	11	(1)
2022–	Nigeria	27	(8)
Medal record Men's football Representing   England FIFA U-20 World Cup Winner 2017 Representing   Nigeria Africa Cup of Nations Runner-up 2023
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:37, 14 December 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:00, 14 November 2024 (UTC)

Ademola Lookman Olajade Alade Aylola Lookman MON (born 20 October 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Atalanta. Born in England, he plays for the Nigeria national team.

Lookman made his senior debut in 2015, playing as a forward for Charlton Athletic of the Championship. He signed for Everton in January 2017, where he played mainly as a winger. After joining Italian club Atalanta in 2022, he won the UEFA Europa League in 2024, scoring a hat-trick in the final against Bayer Leverkusen and subsequently being named the African Footballer of the Year, becoming just the seventh Nigerian international to win the award. ^[2]

Having represented England from under-19 to under-21 levels, Lookman made his senior debut for Nigeria in 2022. He was part of the squad that finished runners-up at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. He is the current CAF player of the year.

Early life

Ademola Lookman Olajade Alade Aylola Lookman ^[3] was born on 20 October 1997 in Wandsworth, Greater London, ^[4] to Nigerian parents. ^[5] He attended St Thomas the Apostle College in Nunhead where he achieved three A*s and five As at GCSE. ^[6]

Club career

Charlton Athletic

Lookman playing for Charlton Athletic in 2016

Lookman joined Charlton Athletic's academy in 2014 after signing from Waterloo, a youth football club based in the London Borough of Lambeth. ^[7] His goalscoring record for Charlton's U18 and U21 teams led to him making a rapid ascent through the Charlton academy ranks and he made his first-team debut for the Addicks on 3 November 2015. ^[8] He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion on 5 December 2015, ^[9] and then followed that up with both Charlton's goals in a 2–2 draw with Bolton Wanderers ten days later. ^[10]

Everton and loan to RB Leipzig

Lookman signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Everton on 5 January 2017 for an undisclosed fee, reported as an initial £7.5 million potentially rising to £11 million with add-ons. ^{[11] [12]} He made his debut for the club ten days later in a 4–0 victory over Manchester City, replacing Ross Barkley in the 90th minute and scoring the team's fourth goal. ^[13] Lookman made his first European appearance for Everton in a 1–0 win over MFK Ružomberok in the Europa League third qualifying round first leg. ^[14]

Although manager Sam Allardyce stated that Lookman would not be leaving on loan in the January 2018 transfer window, the club eventually arranged a loan move to Championship club Derby County, where they hoped he would play regular first-team football. However, the player insisted on an alternative move, and instead joined Bundesliga club RB Leipzig until the end of the 2017–18 season. ^[15] In his first game with Leipzig, Lookman scored the winning goal in the away game against Borussia Mönchengladbach after coming on as a late substitute. ^[16]

RB Leipzig and loans to Fulham and Leicester City

On 25 July 2019, Lookman returned to RB Leipzig on a five-year contract. ^[17] On 30 September 2020, he joined Premier League side Fulham on a season-long loan. ^[18] He scored his first league goal for Fulham against Sheffield United on 18 October. ^[19]

On 31 August 2021, Lookman joined Leicester City on a season-long loan. ^[20] On 11 September 2021, he made his Leicester debut as a 73rd minute substitute during a 1–0 defeat to Manchester City. ^[21] On 28 December 2021, he scored the only goal in their 1–0 win over Liverpool. ^[22]

Atalanta

On 4 August 2022, Lookman joined Serie A club Atalanta on a four-year contract for a reported fee of €15 million. ^{[23] [24]} He scored on his debut for the club, a 2–0 Serie A win over Sampdoria on 13 August. ^[25] In January 2023, he scored braces in three consecutive matches: a 8–2 Serie A win over Salernitana, a 5–2 Coppa Italia win over Spezia and a 3–3 Serie A draw to Juventus. ^[26] On 22 May 2024, he scored his first career hat-trick, in the Europa League final at the Dublin Arena, as Atalanta defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3–0 to win the trophy for the first time in the club's history; in addition, he became the first player to score a hat-trick in a one-legged Men's European final since Pierino Prati in 1969. ^[27]

On 4 September 2024, Lookman became the first current Atalanta player to be nominated for Ballon d'Or due to his performances in Nigeria's build up to 2023 Africa Cup of Nations final as well as Atalanta's triumph in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa League. ^[28]

International career

Lookman was born in England to Nigerian parents and is eligible for the national teams of both countries. ^[29] He received his first international call-up when he was named in the England U19 squad named for Mexico. ^[30] He was subsequently named in the squad for the European U19 Championships that summer. ^[31] In early 2017, Lookman turned down the opportunity to switch allegiance to Nigeria after an approach from the national coach, Gernot Rohr. ^[32]

Lookman was selected in the England under-20 team for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He scored three goals in the tournament, two against Costa Rica in the last 16 and one goal against Italy in the semi-finals. ^[33] England beat Venezuela 1–0 in the final, to achieve the country's first victory in the final of a global tournament since the 1966 World Cup. ^[34]

He received his first call-up for the England under-21s for European Championship qualifiers against the Netherlands under-21s and Latvia under-21s in September 2017. ^[35] He made his debut in the first match, and set up Everton teammate Dominic Calvert-Lewin for England's goal in a 1–1 draw. ^[36]

Lookman turned down Nigeria again in early 2018 after meeting with the president of the Nigeria Football Federation. ^[37] He subsequently rejected Nigeria's approaches for a third time in September 2018, after England senior manager Gareth Southgate convinced him that he was part of his plans. ^[38]

Despite his caps and success for England at youth level, and having previously rejected Nigeria's approaches, in January 2020 the Nigeria Football Federation announced that Lookman would be switching his international allegiance to Nigeria. ^[39] However, Lookman also stated: "I've not changed my mind on wanting to represent England". ^[40] On 10 February 2022, Lookman's request to represent the Nigerian national team was approved by FIFA. ^[5] Lookman made his debut for Nigeria on 25 March 2022, in their scoreless draw with Ghana as part of the third round of the African section of qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. ^[41]

Lookman was named in Nigeria's squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations held in the Ivory Coast. ^[42] He scored both goals for Nigeria in their 2–0 win over Cameroon in the round of 16, ^[43] before scoring their only goal in a 1–0 win over Angola in the quarter-final. ^[44] Nigeria lost the final 1–2 to Ivory Coast. ^[45] Lookman and the rest of the Nigeria team were named Members of the Order of the Niger in recognition of their performance. ^[46]

Style of play

Lookman is a versatile and explosive winger with a dynamic style of play. He is known for his direct, pacey runs at the opposition defense, causing problems with his quick feet and close control. ^{[47] [48]} He has a keen eye for goal and is able to finish chances with both feet, as well as with his head. Lookman is a creative player, who can unlock defenses with his clever passing and clever movement off the ball. ^{[49] [50] [51]}

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 14 December 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [a]		League cup [b]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Charlton Athletic	2015–16 [52]	Championship	24	5	0	0	0	0	—		—		24	5
	2016–17 [53]	League One	21	5	3	2	1	0	—		—		25	7
	Total		45	10	3	2	1	0	—		—		49	12
Everton	2016–17 [53]	Premier League	8	1	—		—		—		—		8	1
	2017–18 [54]		7	0	1	0	2	0	6 [c]	2	—		16	2
	2018–19 [55]		21	0	2	1	1	0	—		—		24	1
	Total		36	1	3	1	3	0	6	2	—		48	4
RB Leipzig (loan)	2017–18 [54]	Bundesliga	11	5	—		—		—		—		11	5
RB Leipzig	2019–20 [56]	Bundesliga	11	0	1	0	—		1 [d]	0	—		13	0
Fulham (loan)	2020–21 [57]	Premier League	34	4	0	0	1	0	—		—		35	4
Leicester City (loan)	2021–22 [58]	Premier League	26	6	2	0	2	2	12 [e]	0	—		42	8
Atalanta	2022–23 [59]	Serie A	31	13	2	2	—		—		—		33	15
	2023–24 [60]		31	11	3	1	—		11 [c]	5	—		45	17
	2024–25 [61]		13	8	0	0	—		5 [d]	3	1 [f]	0	19	11
	Total		75	32	5	3	—		16	8	1	0	96	43
Career total			228	58	14	6	7	2	35	10	1	0	294	76

1. Includes FA Cup, DFB-Pokal, Coppa Italia
2. Includes EFL Cup
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
4. Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
5. Four appearances in UEFA Europa League, eight appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
6. Appearance in UEFA Super Cup

International

As of match played 14 November 2024 ^[62]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Nigeria	2022	6	1
	2023	5	1
	2024	16	6
Total		27	8

As of match played 14 November 2024

Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lookman goal. ^[62]

List of international goals scored by Ademola Lookman

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	13 June 2022	Adrar Stadium, Agadir, Morocco	4	São Tomé and Príncipe	7–0	10–0	2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification	[63]
2	10 September 2023	Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, Nigeria	8	São Tomé and Príncipe	2–0	6–0	2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification	[64]
3	27 January 2024	Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, Abidjan, Ivory Coast	16	Cameroon	1–0	2–0	2023 Africa Cup of Nations	[65]
4					2–0
5	2 February 2024	Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, Abidjan, Ivory Coast	17	Angola	1–0	1–0	2023 Africa Cup of Nations	[66]
6	22 March 2024	Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech, Morocco	20	Ghana	2–0	2–1	Friendly	[67]
7	7 September 2024	Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, Nigeria	24	Benin	1–0	3–0	2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification	[68]
8					3–0

Honours

Atalanta

• UEFA Europa League: 2023–24 ^[69]

England U20

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2017 ^[70]

Nigeria

• Africa Cup of Nations runner-up: 2023 ^[71]

Individual

• LFE Apprentice of the Year (Championship): 2015–16 ^[72]
• Atalanta Player of the Season: 2022–23, ^[73] 2023–24 ^[74]
• Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 2023 ^[75]
• UEFA Europa League Team of the Season: 2023–24 ^[76]
• African Footballer of the Year: 2024 ^[2]
• CAF Team of the Year: 2024 ^[77]

Orders

• Member of the Order of the Niger: 2024 ^[46]

References

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External links

• Profile ^{[ permanent dead link ‍]} at the Atalanta BC website
• Ademola Lookman – UEFA competition record ( archive )