Ademola Lookman has gone from strength to strength since his loan move at Leicester City in 2021/22.
Lookman scored a hat-trick to seal victory for Atalanta in the Europa League final to end Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten run.
The 27-year-old’s hat-trick to deliver his side silverware saw him plunder 17 goals and supply 10 assists in all competitions last term.
As a result, Lookman was nominated for the Ballon d’Or alongside some of the greatest in world football, including Manchester City’s Rodri, and Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe.
The attackers’ transformation into one of Europe’s best is a far cry from the player he was during his time at Leicester, and now they’re wishing they were able to sign the Nigerian.
Ademola Lookman second striker of Atalanta and Nigeria during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD6 match between Atalanta BC and Real...
Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Why Leicester City didn’t sign Ademola Lookman permanently
Leicester signed Lookman on a season-long loan deal in the summer of 2021, as the Foxes bolstered their attack in an attempt to challenge for Europe.
The fleet-footed forward produced a return of six goals in 26 Premier League games and Brendan Rodgers was keen on signing him permanently for £14 million.
Unfortunately, Leicester couldn’t sign Lookman because they were unable to recruit any players at the end of the 2021/22 campaign, as explained by the former boss.
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Rodgers said: “The only sad part for us [at Leicester] was that, at the end of that season, we could have bought him for £14m but you think back to that summer, we couldn’t sign any players.
“One of my guys who I worked closely with at Celtic and Leicester is a guy called Lee Congerton and by then Lee was the general manager of Atalanta.”
Leicester City fans respond as Lookman wins African Player of the Year
Lookman’s value has skyrocketed since he was on loan at the King Power Stadium and he’s been recognised for his improvement on the European stage.
Following a nomination for the Ballon d’Or, the 23-cap Nigerian international has just been announced as the African Player of the Year.
It’s an award the likes of Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto’o, Yaya Toure and Mohamed Salah have previously won, with Lookman beating the Egyptian and many other stars to the trophy.
Reacting to this news via X, Leicester fans were understandably annoyed that they were unable to sign him for £15 million but instead wasted money elsewhere.
“Context.. we spent £25m on Skipp but couldn’t afford £15m for Lookman,” one supporter said.
“What could’ve been man, I’ll never get over this one NEVER,” another responded.
“Pains me that we couldn’t sign him due to FFP. Again highlighting some terrible recent management of the club on a financial level,” a third pointed out.
“Yunus akgun, another lookman? We spent £25m on skipp when stacked in that area when we could have had yunus for £7-10m in an area we’re short. He’s pulling up trees this season too,” a fifth added.