Pagliuca further noted that Atalanta do not single out players for errors made during football matches
By Kehinde Okeowo
Atalanta co-owner, Stephen Pagliuca has backed Nigerian international, Ademola Lookman, claiming head coach, Gian Piero Gasperini ‘made a mistake’ in his handling of his rift with the winger.
Gasperini publicly criticised Lookman for missing a crucial penalty in La Dea’s 3-1 home defeat to Club Brugge in a UEFA Champions League (UCL) fixture played last week, saying he was not designated to take sport kicks.
The Italian tactician went on to describe the winger as “one of the worst penalty takers”, a statement Lookman later described as “disrespectful”.
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Following the incident, Pagliuca, while speaking with Gazetta dello Sport, said the saga has been resolved by the club.
Wadding into the matter, he said, “We want to put this situation behind us, and I think we have, considering the 5-0 victory [against Empoli].”
“He made a mistake by speaking about an individual. At Atalanta, with the Percassi family, we have a policy: if things go wrong, we take responsibility. We look at ourselves and how to improve.”
