Atalanta star Ademola Lookman is set to depart the club this summer, according to reports - and after a broken-down switch to another Serie A club, that has seen Aston Villa contacted over a potential move for his services.
The report by TBR Football claims that Lookman's entourage and intermediaries are making calls and talking to other clubs, after a breakdown in his proposed move to Inter Milan, with a deal taking him to the San Siro having collapsed.
Ademola Lookman
Ademola Lookman
Now looking for alternative options, the Nigerian has handed in a transfer request at the Stadio di Bergamo as he aims to secure an exit away from the Italian outfit - and that has seen the former Everton youngster hold 'conversations' with Villa in the past 48 hours, according to the report.
The 'world-class' winger's camp have been in contact with various clubs to inform him that any Nerazzurri move is off the table, and with Lookman having been on Villa's shortlist over the summer, they have been contacted as a potential destination for the London-born winger, despite interest in Chelsea star Nicolas Jackson.
Inter would not pay £43million for his services from Atalanta, but that would not be an issue for an English side, and he could be an option to move into Unai Emery's attacking ranks alongside the likes of Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins and Donyell Malen with Villa aiming to win the Europa League at the end of the current season.
Villa have just sold Jacob Ramsey for a similar fee to Newcastle United to avoid struggling with PSR woes, and with their academy product seen as 'pure profit', that will give them the capital needed to land Lookman on a more financially-favourable deal.
Lookman began his career in England via Charlton Athletic's youth academy, featuring in 45 league games for them at the age of just 19, scoring 10 goals in the process before joining Everton. However, he wasn't quite first-team ready at Goodison Park and only scored one Premier League goal in 36 games - coming on his debut in an impressive 4-0 win over Manchester City.
Time away in the Bundesliga at RB Leipzig was followed by loan spells back in the Premier League at Fulham and Leicester City, where he began to show what he was made of - but it's been his time in Bergamo where he has properly nailed down a first-team spot, notching 39 goals in 93 Serie A appearances for La Dea to become one of their star players, as well as a Europa League hat-trick in the 2024 final against Bayer Leverkusen.
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