Former Italy and Napoli striker, Michele Padovano, has referred to Nigerian and Atalanta forward, Ademola Lookman, as disrespectful for how he’s handled the interest PSG showed in him, Soccernet.ng reports.
Lookman has been at the Bergamo-based club since 2022 and peaked last season, helping them to the Coppa Italia final before scoring a hat-trick against Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the UEFA Europa League final.
The former Leicester City man also helped the Super Eagles of Nigeria to a second place in the AFCON 2023 final in Ivory Coast, sparking interest from French Champions, Paris Saint-Germain.
Following PSG’s interest, Lookman, like his teammate, Koopmeiners, asked to be excluded from Atalanta’s matches till their future is sorted.
The decision did not go down well with Padovano, who felt the players’ decision was an act of disrespect to the club. The 57-year-old took to his Instagram page to publicly call Lookman out for how he handled the transfer saga.
“Lookman should have respect for Atalanta because, in previous years, he has not really exploded. Atalanta gave him the opportunity to become an important player, and this attitude does not give him credit,” the ex-Crystal Palace man wrote on his page.
Paris Saint-Germain have offered Lookman a massive salary increase. Le Parisien proposed terms to the 27-year-old will see his salary go from €1.8 million to €4.5 million a year.