Ademola Lookman Inspires Atalanta to Europa League Triumph

Chidozie Prince Ahaneku

6 months ago

Ademola Lookman was the hero of the night as Atalanta defeated Bayer Leverkusen to claim victory in the final of the 2023/2024 Europa League final. This match was much anticipated because Bayer Leverkusen was on the verge of stretching their invincible run of the 2023/2024 campaign, which sadly has come to an end. All eyes were on Bayer Leverkusen. They were the fan’s favourite for the title. However, Lookman had other ideas.

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Bayer Leverkusen had a large chunk of the possession, with 67%, but they could not control the game against a high-intensity Atalanta side that just managed 33% of the possession. As a result, the first goal came early in the 12th minute from Ademola Lookman, through a Davide Zappacosta assist. 14 minutes later, the Nigerian doubled his lead to end the first half two goals up.

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Furthermore, in the 75^th minute, the Super Eagles forward, Ademola Lookman completed his hat trick from a Gianluca Scamacca pass to put daylight between Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen and to ensure he rendered nearly impossible any chance of Bayer’s routine last-minute comebacks.

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Fellow compatriot, Victor Okoh Boniface was brought into the fray for Leverkusen in the 46^th minute, replacing Josip Stanisic. However, he only 1 shot off target and 1 blocked shot. With this defeat, Victor Okoh Boniface and Bayer Leverkusen’s fairy tale run comes to an end, even though they have the DFB Pokal final to play against Kaiserslautern.

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